Our Secrets
by StoryTellerMax
Summary: Cuddy has been keeping a big secret. Her mother has been keeping an even bigger secret. What do they have to do with House? And more importantly, what do they have to do with Cuddy's new assistant? NOW COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Our Secrets  
 **Category:** Romance, Hurt/Comfort  
 **Rating:** M for later chapters  
 **Setting:** episode 9 season 3 "Finding Judas"  
 **Summary:** _Cuddy has been keeping a big secret. Her mother has been keeping an even bigger secret. What do they have to do with House? And more importantly, what do they have to do with Cuddy's new assistant?_  
 **Disclaimer:** I do not own any rights to the TV show House MD.

 **Author's Notes:** _This storyline is taken from another show. I just reworked it into the House MD universe. I have not written the Tritter storyline, or House's pills etc into this story so it didn't happen. Lot's of other storylines will be missing as well, such as Chase/Cameron romance. Medical information may be wrong as well as I am not a Doctor.  
_  
 **Chapter One:**

 _"It's a good thing you failed to become a mom, 'cause you suck at it!"_

House words echoed in Cuddy's head had she sat in her office crying. He was in pain, and he lashed out. A part of her knew that she shouldn't take it personally. But this was personal, more personal then House could have known when he said them.

She wanted to close her eyes and erase everything. Erase House's words. Erase the pain, the real pain, the pain that she had tried to bury for so long but that come flooding back with House's words.

A sudden knock at her door startles her. She doesn't want company. She just wants to leave and forget.

"I'm busy" She tries to say calmly but her voice breaks and gives her away.

"Are you okay?" asks Wilson, concern evident in his voice.

Cuddy shakes her head and takes a short breath. "Yeah, sure."

"Uhm…" Wilson begins "What I meant by 'Are you okay' is 'What the hell did House do'?"

"It's not what he did it's what I -" Cuddy pauses, afraid of saying too much. She bites her lip and shakes her head slightly. "…It doesn't matter"

Wilson looks at her for a moment before asking "Did he say something?"

"Wilson…" Cuddy begins

"Seriously? What did he say? Because I know that he's said or done something. I've seen him be an ass to you a thousand times, but I've never seen it get to you"

"Guess I'm just having a bad day…." She trailed off with a sniff "When this case is over, I'll – I'll head home"

"Cuddy—"

"-Really, I'm fine."

Wilson stepped back and nodded. "Okay. But if you want to talk, you know where I'll be"

Cuddy offered him a very small smile as thanks and watched him leave.

As soon as she could no longer see him, she let a brief sob escape her lips. She had to pull herself together. She had kept this secret for 20 years, and she had just come so close to spilling it. She couldn't let that happen. She wiped her eyes with the pad of her thumb. She needed to think about the little girl upstairs who still needed her. She couldn't live in the past.

Not when it hurt so much.

-

it was early the next morning as Chase left the hospital. The case had been solved and after helping Cameron and Foreman complete some paperwork, he was finally ready to go home and rest.

As Chase walked towards his car in the hospital's underground car park, his eye caught something bright yellow. He did a double take when he realised that right in front of him was a yellow Bugatti Veyron 16.5. Chase wasn't that knowledgeable about cars, but he did no a good car when he saw it.

He walked over to get a better look and that's when he noticed the young woman leaning against the driver's side door.

The woman looked like she was in her early twenties. She had long black hair which was draped over one shoulder. She was wearing cut-off jeans and a short sleeve white top, a pair of sunglasses sitting on top of her head. Chase had to admit that she looked very attractive.

"Hi," Chase said, offering her a big smile "Is this your car?"

The woman looked up and him and smiled back. "It is. You into cars?"

Chase half shrugged "Not really. I just know a good, expensive car when I see one"

"Yeah, it does alright" replied the woman with a small chuckle. Then she pushed herself off her car and took a few steps towards Chase. "So, are you a patient here?"

"Oh, no-no," Chase replied quickly, shaking his head. Not sure why that question needed to be answered so quickly. "I work here. I'm a doctor."

"Oh"

"I'm actually just finishing my shift, but can I help you at all?" Chase asked.

"No thanks," The woman replied and pointed a finger to the main elevator of the car park. "I'm kind of waiting for someone. But I'm sure I'll see you around"

"Ah, yeah. Well bye." Chase gave her one last smile before heading back to his own car.

He had to admit that there was something about her that was intriguing, and while a part of him wanted to stay and talk to her more, another part of him was tired and he needed to go home so he left.

-

After Chase had driven off, the woman went back and leaned against her car. She grabbed her car keys out of her pocket, running her thumb over them lightly.

She had to admit that the doctor she had just spoken to was cute, but she really was waiting for someone so she didn't have time to stop and chat.

It was at that moment that another car pulled into the car park. The woman waited until the owner had gotten out and was walking towards the elevator. It was the person she had been waiting for.

"Hey!" The woman called out. The person turned and looked at her. "You're Doctor Cuddy's assistant right?"

"Um yeah. Can I help you?" He asked.

The young woman grinned and held up her keys. "How would you like a new car?"

 _To be continued…_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two:**

It was a very hectic morning in the hospital. At least for Cuddy. She was overworked, trying to juggle several meetings all at once. What made it worse was that her assistant had randomly quite with no warning or explanation as to why. He didn't even give two weeks' notice or a written letter of resignation. No all she got was a rather weird phone call from him, saying that he had found better options.

What made it worse was that the last few days seemed to be the days where everyone wanted something from her. She had at least three board member's wanting to meet. Two potential donors, two heads of departments wanting to talk. Plus to top it all off there was House. He always made her work life a little bit more….colorful. But since his little comment to her in the bathroom two days ago about her failing as a mother, Cuddy had not been able to bring herself to talk to him.

Hell, she hadn't even been able to look at him. It was common for him to avoid her, except when seeking out permission for a procedure or test. It was not common for her to avoid him though. Thankfully he didn't have any case at the moment which meant that she was quite happy to let him do his own thing in his office.

Eventually, things would go back to normal. She just needed to get her head together and not think about what happened in the past. She needed to be calm, but the current ringing off her phone was not helping the situation.

She had been in her office, pacing while on the phone for the thirteenth time that day. Just after she hung up there was a light knock on her door.

"Come in" She sighed as she moved to sit at her desk and placed the phone back down. She was expecting a potential donor. She was surprised when she was a young woman walking over to her carrying a folder under her arm. "Can I help you?"

"No, but I'm here to help you" The woman replied. "I'm your new assistant. I'm Max Taylor"

Cuddy looked at her for a moment before she collected herself. This day and really thrown her off. "I'm – I'm sorry, did you say 'new assistant'?" She asked

"Yep" Replied the Max.

"But I haven't had time to hire a new assistant yet," Cuddy replied, confused by this new situation.

"Alex hired me as his replacement"

"He did?" Cuddy asked. Again Max nodded with a smile. Cuddy shook her head. "Look, I'm sorry but that's not how this works. I need to do interviews and check references. I'm sorry"

"Oh, I have references –" Max began as she pulled out a piece of paper from a folder she had been carrying.

Cuddy put one hand out to signal for Max to stop talking. "I said I'm sorry. Look you seem nice, but I'm just too busy right now. You're welcome to call back tomorrow with your details to organize an interview."

"No, that's ok" Max shrugged. "But are you sure? I mean, you look pretty swamped and I could start right now"

Cuddy shakes her head and goes to open her mouth to answer when suddenly there is another knock on her door. This time it is an older man, dressed in what looked like a very fancy suite. It was the donor she had been expecting before.

"Mr. Fletcher," Cuddy announced, standing up from her chair. "Please come in." She then turned back to Max. "Like I said, you are welcome to leave your details, but as you can see I have a previous appointment"

Max nodded slowly and smiled, "Ok. Thanks anyway"

With that, Max turned around and walked out of Cuddy's office, closing the door behind her.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Once outside of Cuddy's office, Max sighed and rolled her eyes to look at the ceiling. _'Great'_ she thought _'well that didn't work,'_

She looked around the outer office and slightly chewed on her bottom lip.

 _'Guess I got to find a plan B'_ she thought.

 _ ****House MD****_

"—Mr. Fletcher, I understand that a hundred thousand dollars is a large amount of money—" Cuddy had begun.

"—An amount that I have not decided to donate yet" replied Fletcher matter of factly.

"Yes." Cuddy nodded. They had been talking for several minutes and she was getting more exasperated as each minute went by. "And I wanted to make sure that you understand that you would have an input as to what the hospital did with those funds, but I can't guarantee that you would get a large input."

"To be honest I'm not sure that is good enough"

Cuddy nodded. She had been trying to get a donation from Fletcher for the past year. He had continued to be stubborn and seemed to throw a new reason why he couldn't donate every time they met. Cuddy had to fight an urge not to sigh loudly. Fletcher was infuriating but the hospital needed his donation.

"As I've told you, the board would have the majority vote on where the money is spent" Cuddy continued, a fake smile plastered on her face.

Fletcher opened his mouth when the door to the office opened and Max walked back in.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," said Max to Cuddy. "Um, did I drop my cell in here?"

"Oh um…" Cuddy briefly looks around on the floor.

"Hey," Max said suddenly, looking at Fletcher. She grinned and pointed a finger at him. "You're Albert Fletcher right? The owner of one of the biggest motel chains in the state?" She asked.

Fletcher smiled broadly at her, happy that a young woman had recognized him.

"That would be me." Fletcher grinned proudly.

"I also heard that you were trying to get into politics?" Max continued.

Fletcher had turned to get a better look at Max, almost forgetting about Cuddy still in front of him.

"I am trying. I have to admit there are some obstacles that I haven't been able to get over yet" replied Fletcher.

"Right…." Max nodded and then turned to look at Cuddy. "I don't think my keys are here. Thanks anyway" She turned and took a step towards the door then suddenly stopped. "Sorry, again" she continued as she turned back around. "But didn't I also read that your popularity took a bit of a negative dive recently?"

Fletcher and Cuddy both look at Max with stunned expressions. Before either of them could answer, however, Max quickly continued.

"'Cause, if it were me, well I'd be trying to boost a more positive image for myself. Like, say, donating a huge amount of money to a hospital." Max continued, barely taking a breath yet full of confidence. "Plus, I would also act like I didn't want people to know about my donation, so that when the media did find out, well then I'd just look more humble. That would make me more popular with the voting public." Then she shrugged and put one palm up in the air. "But, you know. That's just me."

Cuddy was staring agape at Max. She wasn't really sure what to say to that. She looked over at Fletcher, who was also staring at Max.

"Oh, silly me," Max said suddenly, sticking one hand into her jacket pocket. "My cell's right here" She grinned broadly before turning on her heel. "Bye"

Max left, as quickly as she had entered.

Cuddy sat, still stunned by what had happened. When she finally got her thoughts back on track, she turned back to Fletcher.

"Ah, I'm so—" She began

"-Dr. Cuddy," Fletcher started. He turned and smiled slightly. "Let me write you a check"

 _ ****House MD****_

Not long after, Cuddy came out of her office leading Fletcher and thanking him for his donation to the hospital.

"Your money will go towards helping so many," Cuddy told him. "I' can't thank you enough"

"I think some of that thanks needs to go to this young lady." Said Fletcher, as he turned and gestured over Cuddy's shoulder to Max who was leaning on the assistant's desk.

Cuddy turned, a little surprised to see Max there.

"Oh," said Cuddy.

Fletcher grabbed her hand and shook it before Cuddy could grasp why Max was there.

"I expect you will have some reporters calling in the next few days," Fletcher told Cuddy knowingly.

Cuddy snapped her attention back to him and nodded. "I will be sure to say only positive things about you, Mr. Fletcher"

"Please, call me Albert." Fletcher smiled. "Now if you excuse me, ladies, I do have another appointment."

With that, Fletcher nodded and walked out. Max gave him a little wave as he left. Then she turned around to Cuddy.

"I..I don't know what to say…" Cuddy began.

"Yeah, sorry," Max said, slightly biting her bottom lip "I probably shouldn't have interrupted like that"

"No no," Cuddy said quickly. "I'm glad you did. You somehow got him to change his mind about his donation." She smiled genially at Max. Feeling a little bit lighter and less stressed then she had in a while. "Thank you. I've been trying to get him to donate something for almost a year now."

Max smiled back and pushed herself off the desk.

"Don't worry about it. Sometimes it helps to come at these things from a different angle" Max said, and then looked towards the outer door. "Um, I probably should go…." She trailed off, hoping that Cuddy would say something.

She was not disappointed.

"Hey," Cuddy began "Do you wanna grab a coffee?"

Max slowly smiled.

 _To be Continued…_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three:**

Cuddy led Max to the hospital's cafeteria, where they both grabbed a coffee in a takeaway cup. Cuddy wasn't sure about Max, but she herself knew that she would most likely be called away and wanted to be able to still have her coffee if that happened.

After grabbing their coffees, Cuddy and Max sat down opposite each other at one of the tables in the cafeteria.

"So, were you friends with Alex?" Cuddy asked

"Not really." Max shrugged "He just knew that I needed a job, so when he decided to leave he let me know you'd be looking for a new assistant"

Cuddy nodded and took a long sip of her coffee. She knew that Max's answer didn't really explain much but she decided to just let it go.

"So, Max, what were you doing before you spoke with Alex?" Cuddy asked. "I mean, what were you doing for a job?"

"I was studying. I'm nineteen so I was in college." Max replied

"You dropped out?"

Max half shrugged "I'm kind of just taking a break. Get some things clear in my head" She explained. "There are some things that I need to sort out. I figured an assistant job would keep me busy."

Cuddy nodded. She could relate. Not with leaving school, but with wanting to clear her head. She was very grateful to Max for her help with Fletcher, especially after the days she had been having. It was nice to focus on something else, if only for a short while.

"Thank you again for your help with Mr Fletcher back there," said Cuddy

"You're welcome" Max replied "Again" she laughed.

Cuddy couldn't help but smile. She was feeling more relaxed then she had in days.

"Besides, it seemed like he was being unnecessarily difficult." Max continued before taking a sip of her coffee. "Guess I wanted to help end the misery"

And for the first time in days, Cuddy laughed, a real actual laugh.

 ** _**House MD**_**

"Somethings going on" House announced as he walked over to Wilson.

Wilson had been sitting in the hospital's cafeteria, enjoying a nice quiet lunch when House had startled him slightly.

"What?" Wilson asked.

"Somethings going on" House repeated as he sat down opposite his friend.

"Yeah, I heard you" Wilson sighed rolling his eyes. "I mean 'What?' as in 'What's going on?'"

"I don't have a case," House said matter of factly.

"And?"

"And I'm not in the clinic either"

"Are you meant to be in the clinic?" Wilson asked and House nodded. "Has Cuddy chased you up about being in the clinic?"

"No."

"Oh.." Wilson thought for a moment and then shook his head. "Sorry, I got no idea"

House rolled his eyes and sighed loudly.

"Something's going on because Cuddy hasn't told me to get in the clinic"

Wilson thought for a moment. "Well…maybe she's busy. I heard her assistant quit. And the nurses' recon she's been more stressed than usual"

"No," House shook his head. "It's something else. She hasn't yelled at me since my Erythropoietic Protoporphyria patient"

"House that was only a few days ago. Like I said, she's probably just busy…."

Wilson paused and looked down at his food, deep in thought for a moment. He thought back to that night when he had found Cuddy in her office crying.  
 _  
_ _"_ _Uhm…" Wilson begins "What I meant by 'Are you okay' is 'What the hell did House do'?"_

 _"_ _It's not what he did it's what I -" Cuddy pauses, afraid of saying too much. She bites her lip and shakes her head slightly. "…It doesn't matter"  
_  
"Well she may be upset about something you did or said"

"That's never stopped her before" House replied.

"I don't know." Wilson shook his head slightly again and looked back up at House. "I saw her crying in her office a few nights ago. She didn't tell me why, but I'm guessing it had something to do with you"

"I—oh" House suddenly remembered the words that he had said to her while she was in the shower with his patient.

"House, what did you do this time?"

"Nothing" House lied. He knew exactly what he did. And he knew that for things to go back to normal, he would have to apologize to Cuddy. But he also knew that she probably wouldn't want him blabbing to Wilson about it or about her secret goal of trying to become pregnant.

"It can't be nothing." Said Wilson "She was crying. She's been acting sad ever since. She-" Wilson stopped suddenly.

They heard laughing coming from the other side of the cafeteria. They both stopped and turned around to see Cuddy, sitting with a coffee in her hand, a young woman sitting opposite, and Cuddy was…Laughing.

"She seems fine now," said House, looking intently at his boss from across the room. "Who's that?" He asked as he lifted his cane and used the end to point towards Cuddy's companion.

"Uh…I'm not sure" Wilson stated still in a bit of confusion.

Suddenly, House pushed his chair out and stood up quickly.

"Where are you going?" Wilson asked

"To find out who that girl is" House replied

Wilson stood up almost as fast as House and walked rather quickly to join his friend's side. Together they walked over to Cuddy's table. When he got there, House loudly cleared his throat, stopping Cuddy mid-word.

Cuddy looked up at House and Wilson and then quickly turned away from House. Something that did not go unnoticed by the diagnostician.

"Um, Hi," Wilson said sheepishly. A little embarrassed by House being so rude. Not that he shouldn't be used to it by now.

"Hi," Max said, looking up at the two men and smiling.

"Oh, um, Max this is Dr Wilson, head of Oncology" Cuddy gestured her hand towards Wilson.

Max reached a hand out and shook Wilson's with a smile still on her face.

"Hi," She said again.

Wilson nodded and then let go of her hand.

"And this is Dr House, head of our Diagnostic department" Cuddy continued, barely looking at House as she introduced him to Max.

Max whipped her head back to Cuddy for a moment. Her eyes wide in surprise and her smile faltering slightly. Then she managed to compose herself and looked back at House and smiled slightly.

"It's good to meet you," She said, reaching her hand out to shake his.

House ignored her. He was busy looking at Cuddy, who had yet to look him in the eyes. Something was going on with her. He had hurt her before but she had never stopped looking at him before. He understood that his comment in the bathroom and been way over the line, but he hadn't realized how far he had gone until just now.

Max pulled her hand back and frowned slightly as she looked from House to Cuddy and back again. This situation didn't seem right.

"This is Max" Cuddy began, she looked up at Wilson but refused to look in House's direction. "She's my new assistant"

Max quickly looked over at Cuddy and grinned "Yeah?" She asked.

Cuddy nodded her head. She knew she should at least interview Max, and probably other potential assistance, but there was something about Max. Cuddy couldn't put her finger on it, but she liked the young woman. She had a way of making Cuddy feel less stressful and after the last few days, she needed that.

"Great" Max smiled broadly "Thank you"

Cuddy smiled back at Max. "I should probably get back" she stood up slowly from the table. "I still have a few meetings... Max why don't you meet me in my office in half an hour and we'll go over a few things."

"Sounds good," Max replied with a small smile.

Cuddy turned and nodded a quick goodbye to Wilson before walking away and leaving the cafeteria.

House was so busy looking after Cuddy that he had almost forgotten about Max and Wilson. Until Wilson started talking again.

"Well, ah, welcome to the hospital," Wilson told Max as he turned back to her.

Max nodded. "Thanks. I better go," she slowly pushed her chair out and stood up. "I've got a few things to do. But I'll see you both around. Bye Dr Wilson, Dr House"

"See ya" Wilson replied.

House gave a half wave, still not looking at Max "Yeah" he sighed.

Max frowned before shaking her head and walking past the two doctors. Wilson watched her leave and then turned to House, who was deep in thought.

"That was a bit rude," Wilson said pointedly.

House finally snapped out of his trance and looked over at his friend. "What?"

Wilson sighed and rolled his eyes before heading back to his table to finish his lunch. He didn't bother asking House if he was going to join him.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Max walked out of the cafeteria and turned a corner. She leaned against the wall and pulled her cell phone out of her pocket. She quickly looked around, making sure no one was around before dialling a number and placing the phone against her ear.

It rang twice before someone answered.

"It's me.." She said into the phone. "…I'm in."

 ** _To be continued…._**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four:**

It was late in the evening. Much later than House would usually have remained at the hospital, but he was busy thinking and hadn't really noticed the time.

He sat at his desk, with his chair facing the other way so he could look out the window at the fading sun in the sky. His cane in one hand as he twirled it around absentmindedly.

He thought back to Cuddy in the cafeteria and how she was laughing one moment and then trying her best not to look at him at the next. He had done a lot of things in the past that may have upset Cuddy, and he was sure that he had overstepped many lines before, both on a professional case and a personal case. But Cuddy always managed to fight back. It was one of the reasons why he kept doing it. Like with Wilson, Cuddy knew how to take his hits and knew just how to give her own back.

Not this time though. This time he had gone too far. Cuddy couldn't even bring herself to look at him. Maybe he didn't want her to. Maybe he didn't want to see the hurt in her eyes.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Max stood outside House's office, just able to see him through the half-closed blinds along the office wall. In one arm, she was holding a small sketch pad and held a lead pencil in the other hand. As she watched House, she started to draw something. Her eyes darted from House to the pad, and back again continuously. She was so focused that she didn't notice someone walk towards her in her peripheral vision.

"Ah, Hi." Came a voice.

Max jumped slightly and quickly flipped the cover over on her sketchbook. She turned around and saw Dr. Wilson just as he stepped next to her.

"Can I help you?" Wilson asked, looking at her curiously.

Max regained her composure and shook her head slightly. She offered Wilson a smile and said "No, no I'm fine"

"Were you after Dr. House?" Wilson asked, gesturing towards House's office.

"I'm just doing some research" Max explained. "Dr. Cuddy suggested I take a look around the hospital. She specifically made a point of saying that I should, and I quote, 'familiarise myself with Dr. House and his team' so I'm just… Looking"

She hadn't exactly lied to Dr. Wilson. Dr. Cuddy had said that it's just that it wasn't the only reason why she was there.

Wilson chuckled slightly and nodded, "That makes sense." He tilted his head towards House's office. "You'll probably be dealing with them a lot"

"And I'm guessing not in a good way?" Max asked.

"Well…Let's just say they make Dr. Cuddy's life, ah, interesting here at the hospital" Wilson said with a slight laugh.

Max turned back and looked at House briefly. Then she shrugged one shoulder and turned walking away. Wilson quickly followed and walked beside her.

"So, do you know Dr. Cuddy?" Wilson asked as they walked.

"Not really" Max replied, turning her head slightly to look at Wilson. "I did only just meet her today when I got this job"

"Oh," Wilson paused for a moment before he continued, "I just assumed you already knew each other."

"Nope," Max smiled and then quickly changed the subject. "So being a doctor, that's gotta be… interesting"

"It can be very fulfilling most of the time" Wilson agreed.

"I bet."

"You're not interested in being a doctor are you?" He asked

"Kind of" She replied honestly. "But, I wouldn't know which field to choose. I can't make my mind up."

Wilson nodded. He knew that could be a hard choice to make.

"Is anyone in your family a doctor?" Wilson asked, "Your parents?"

"Yeah, good ones too—" Max suddenly stopped, eyes wide as she realized what she had just said. "So, um, have you worked here for a long time," She asked quickly to recover from her slip.

"Several years now" Wilson nodded.

"So, you would know Dr. Cuddy and Dr. House pretty well, right?" Max asked.

"Yeah," Wilson answered with a shrug. He looked at her quizzically, "Why?"

"I was just wondering what was going on between the two of them" Max replied. She gave a half shrug and continued, "They seemed…weird before. But, obviously being new here I could be wrong."

"Ah," Wilson thought for a moment. "Probably just some hospital procedure stuff they are disagreeing about"

"Oh. I thought it might have been something different" Max replied, looking down for a moment.

"What do you mean by that?" Wilson asked, surprised and curious.

Max turned and looked at him with a small smile, shaking her head again, "I've just heard some things"

They had reached the elevators and had stopped walking. Wilson let out a small chuckle again.

"Which rumor did you hear?" He asked, an amused smile on his face.

"There's more than one?" Max asked, turning to face Wilson. She reached a hand out and pressed the down button on the wall near the elevator.

"I think there's a few actually," Wilson told her. He thought for a minute and then continued, "There's the one where they are currently having an affair. There's the one where they were having an affair, but now they're not"

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. They both walked in and then Wilson continued.

"There's the one where Cuddy has a thing for House, but he doesn't feel the same for her. And then there's the one where House has a thing for Cuddy, but she doesn't feel the same for him."

"Wow," Max let out a short breath.

"I think there's more," said Wilson, thoughtfully "But those are the main ones."

"Oh," Max thought for a moment and then shrugged. "I heard that they were together. Like, not an affair but an actual couple."

Wilson shook his head vigorously, "Nooooo" He said, shaking his head. "Definitely not a couple."

They heard another 'ding' and the elevator doors opened once again. Wilson turned and didn't see the slight confusion and disappointment in Max's eyes.  
"But…" Max began, slightly confused. "I mean, they used to be a couple? At one point? Right?"

"You probably shouldn't pay attention to rumors or gossip," Wilson told her seriously. "Especially being Cuddy's assistant."

"Yeah," Max said quietly. She collected herself and smiled at Wilson "Thanks"

With that, she walked out and headed back towards Cuddy's office.

Wilson watched her leave and then shook his head. She was a bit odd, but then she might actually blend in, in this hospital.

 ** _**House MD**_**

That night, Max was sitting cross-legged on a large queens size bed in her hotel room. Her sketchbook laid out in front of her. She had her lead pencil in one hand and was holding her cell phone to her ear with the other. She was in the middle of a conversation.

"Yeah, I met them," She said to the person on the other line. "….Dr. Cuddy, she's smart and really lovey, and kind and sweet" Max continued with a small smile and a hint of affection in her voice. She paused and listened then she frowned and continued, "…Yeah, not sure I can say the same about him. He was a little rude, and from what I've heard, he's a bit of a nightmare"

There was another pause as the person on the other end spoke. Max sighed, tapping her pencil against the paper repeatedly.

"Well, I thought they were still together. Still in love." She sighed once more and bit her lower slightly, then she shook her head. "But turns out they may have never been together, so now I'm not sure what the story is….I'm just confused, you know?"

Max listened for a moment before shaking her head with determination, even though the other person couldn't see her. "No, I'm going to stick to my plan" She explained boldly. "I'm going to hang around and suss them out….Yeah… I'll call you later when I find out more. Bye"

Max lowered her cell and hung up the call. Then she tossed the phone beside her on the bed and fell backward until her back hit the mattress. She took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling.

This may be harder than she had thought.

 **To Be Continued….**


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:** _Medical information is all wrong. I tried doing research but then ended up just making stuff up. The medical side of things isn't really important as it's just here to move the plot along. I hope you still enjoy the story anyway._ ****

 **Chapter Five:**

The next day, House was sitting in his office, still thinking about Cuddy. He had yet to find the, for a better word – courage, to go and talk to her. He didn't really know where to start as he wasn't really sure what the problem was. Yes, he had attacked her choices of trying to become a mother, but he had a feeling that there was something else.

He bounced his large tennis ball against the glass wall of his office. He almost hit Max as she walked in. Instead of jumping back, Max kicked her leg out and sent the ball rolling across the room, and into the corner.

"Hey!" House exclaimed, annoyed.

"Well don't throw balls at people" Max shot back.

"Did you want something?" House asked rudely as he stood up and grabbed his cane.

He limbed past her and went to get his ball back.

"You need to get to the clinic," Max told him, folding her arms over her chest. "You have four hours to make up."

House leaned down and grabbed his ball with one hand and then straightened up. He turned and looked over at Max.

"How do you know?" He asked

"I'm Dr Cuddy's assistant." Max shrugged. "It's my job to know"

"So, why didn't Dr Cuddy come here and tell me herself?"

Max unfolded her arms and half shrugged, "You should ask her that."

"Well, I'm busy." House pointed his cane towards the door, "So…"

Max gave him a pointed look and stared him down. "You are not busy. You're playing handball with the wall."

House ignores her and heads back towards his desk.

"What are you doing?" Max asked. She was starting to understand all the negative reputation he had around here. "I just told you to get in the clinic"

"And I told you, I'm busy" House shot back.

Max looked at him for a moment, she was trying to figure him out. He was rude and infuriating, but there had to be more…right?

Max placed one hand on her hip. "Look, I was told to tell you to get in the clinic-"

"-Good, job then. You've told me, so—" House interrupted.

"-So how about you go and do your job." Max snarked back "You know, because Dr Cuddy, your boss, told you to."

House sat down and then turned to look at her. She was definitely more outspoken than any of Cuddy's other assistants. Which would not be good for him. He'd prefer the ones who were scared of him. It made it easier for him to get away with more.

"And why don't you go back to playing solitaire on your computer while you wait for the phone to ring so you can feel like you are earning that paycheck" House pointedly told her.

Yeah, the kid seemed tough but House was House. She wasn't going to get the better of him. Though he had to admit, it was fun to see how far he could push her.

Max opened her mouth but stopped when a group of people walked into the office. It was Chase, Cameron and Foreman. Chase was holding a new patients file in his hands.

"We have a new case – Oh hey" Chase looked at Max and smiled.

Max grinned at him, her face softening a bit.

"Hi, I didn't know you worked with Dr House"

" _For_ " House corrected from his chair.

Max rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Ah, yeah" Chase replied. "So you're Cuddy's new assistant?"

"It would seem so."

"If you're going to flirt could you at least give me the damn patient file," House said suddenly, holding one hand out expectantly. "So I don't have to pay attention."

"I'm not flirting!" Chase shot back, a tinge of anger and embarrassment in his voice.

Once again, Max rolled her eyes before waving her hand slightly. "I got to get back to work. Good luck with the case"

Max waved at Cameron and Foreman, who both looked a little stunned as they didn't really know what was happening.

Max got to the door and then turned back so half her body was still in the office.

"Oh, and I play online poker while I wait for the phone to ring. Not solitaire" She told House. "Stakes are higher"

And then she left.

House couldn't help but smirk slightly.

He stopped when Chase eventually handed him the patient's file. He ignored his fellows as he started to read the file quickly. His thoughts briefly drifted to Cuddy. Not only was she avoiding him but sending her assistant to hassle him about his clinic duty, but she was also passing new cases to his fellows instead of just finding him directly. He needed to find out what was going on with her. But right now he needed to cure this patient.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Several hours later, House and Foreman had angrily walked into Cuddy's office. They had been arguing over the best way to proceed with their patient. Foreman had one theory, and House had another theory. Of course, House's theory would involve some much more dangerous and risky tests.

"Can I help you?" Cuddy said from her desk as the two men came in.

"Our patient doesn't have cancer, "Foreman began "But House wants to shoot her up with Chemo anyway."

"Just because her tests are negative doesn't mean she doesn't have cancer" House shot back, looking at Cuddy.

"Isn't that exactly what it means?" Cuddy asked, looking at Foreman and then at House briefly.

"If we give her a dose of chemo we can see if she really doesn't have cancer or a tumour" House continued. "It's quicker and easier than running all the same tests again"

"But it's riskier." Foreman snapped "You'll end up giving her a stressed induced heart attack"

"But she won't have cancer anymore" House snapped back.

"She doesn't have cancer!" Foreman yelled. "We just need to do a CAT scan and –"

"—Give her the chemo," Cuddy said suddenly.

Both House and Foreman turned to her in shock.

"What?!" They both said in unison.

"If you think the chemo will work, then get it done." She told them softly.

"But—" Foreman began but Cuddy held her hand up and stopped him.

"—If it doesn't work then do the CAT scan"

Foreman was shocked. Cuddy didn't even listen to reason. She usually listened to reason. Not this time. No, this time she automatically sided with House.

Foreman shook his head and quickly walked out.

House turned and looked at Cuddy. She had gone back to looking at whatever paperwork was in front of her. He waited a minute, wanting to see if she would say anything…if she would look at him. When she didn't he turned and left.

 ** _**House MD**_**

"I'll page Cameron to get the chemo set up—" Foreman began as he and House headed towards the elevator.

"—We're not giving her chemo" House stated matter of factly.

Foreman turned to him, eyes wide with disbelief and annoyance.

"Then why did you just demand the ok from Cuddy?" Foreman asked

"We're not doing chemo, it'll make her sicker and could kill her" House continued, deliberately avoiding the question about Cuddy. "All we need is the CAT scan."

House walked into the elevator and pressed the button. He didn't wait for Foreman to join him. The doors closed once more with Foreman still standing outside the elevator, looking stunned.

House had never wanted the chemo. He just wanted to see if Cuddy would approve it. There was usually only one reason why Cuddy lets him do such dangerous tests and procedures. She was feeling guilty about something. The question was, what was she feeling guilty about?

 ** _**House MD**_**

Cuddy was busy trying not to think about what she may have just agreed to. She had to pull herself together. She couldn't let House do whatever he wanted because she felt guilty about something that happened in the past.

She was brought out of her thoughts by a light knock at the door. Cuddy looked up and was relieved to see Max holding a takeaway coffee cup.

"Hi, I heard shutting before when Dr House and Dr Foreman were in here before," Max said as she slowly came into the room. "Thought you could use a caffeine hit."

She handed Cuddy the coffee and Cuddy took it gratefully with a soft smile.

"Thank you, Max." Cuddy nodded. "You can finish up for the day if you like."

"Are you sure?" Max asked.

"Yes." Cuddy nodded.

"Ok" Max nodded with a small smile. "I'll see you tomorrow then."

Then Max turned and left, leaving Cuddy alone with her thoughts once again.  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

It was late in the evening, and most of the hospital staff that were not on the night shift had already gone home.

House had successfully diagnosed their patient. He had Foreman and the others order the necessary tests needed and now their patient would make a full recovery.

Foreman, Cameron and Chase had all already gone home for the night. Has had Wilson, which was good as House had something he needed to do and didn't want to get distracted by Wilson.

House headed towards Cuddy's office and was both pleased and a little nervous to see that her office lights were still on. A part of him had hoped that she had gone home already so he could think about this situation more.

He walked in and was happy to see that Max was not there. He figured that she was the type of person to stick her nose into situations that did not concern her, and if she heard raised voices, then she would probably come in and interrupt before House could get to the bottom of what was going on with Cuddy.

He keeps going and enters Cuddy's office, letting the door bang shut behind him. He watches as Cuddy jumps but doesn't make any other effort to show that she knows he is there. So he waits, waits for her to acknowledge his presence in her office. When she chooses not to he can't help but feel a little angry at her.

"What's going on?" He demands suddenly.

Cuddy had hoped that he would see she was busy and would just leave. But then again he wouldn't be House if he did that.

"I'm catching up on some paperwork" She replied calmly, looking in his direction but avoiding eye contact.

"That's not what I'm talking about" House firmly. Then he sighed. "Why did you ok the chemo when anyone could see it was a bad idea?"

Cuddy shrugged, "You're a good doctor. I trust your judgement"

"You shouldn't"

"Why? I heard the patient's doing fine now, so—"

"—We didn't do the chemo" House interrupted suddenly. "It was a bad idea"

"Then why did you ask fo-" Cuddy stopped and then realized what he had done. "Did you ask for chemo because you wanted to see if I would agree with it or not?" She asked, shocked.

"And you gave in," House told her with a thoughtful nod. "You only give in when you're feeling guilty about something. You don't know this patient personally. There's no one in your family with the same illness—"

"—You don't know-" Cuddy tried to interrupt but House held his cane up and kept talking.

"—So whatever it is, it's not connected to this case." House placed his cane back on the floor and shook his head. "It's not my leg because you're always feeling guilty about that but that doesn't turn you into a hopeless "yes" man. So my conclusion is that you've done something. Something that's making feel more guilty then normal and it's eating you up inside"

House watched as Cuddy looked down at her hands. He had her, he knew he had her. So why didn't the victory feel like he won?

"House…" Cuddy begins, taking a quick breath. "…it's nothing…"

"It's not nothing!" House said angrily "You can't even bring yourself to look at me. So what did you do?" He demanded.

Cuddy looked up and over at House once more. Again she was looking at him but avoiding eye contact.

"I'm looking at you now," She said softly.

"No," House shook his head angrily, "You're looking _to_ me. Not _at_ me. So tell me what's going on?"

"No…I…can't," Cuddy said softly, her voice breaking slightly. She needed to pull herself together.

House banged his cane on the ground. He raised his eyes to the ceiling in frustration.

"Fine!" He snapped. "Don't tell me. But pull yourself together and get over it then. 'Cause otherwise you're going to get someone killed!"

With that, he turned and stormed out of her office. If he had stayed, he would have seen the tears that began to fall rapidly from Cuddy's eyes.

He was right. He was always right. This, her guilt, it was eating her up inside and she needed to get control of it before it caused her to do something stupid.

After a few minutes, Cuddy sniffed and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She knew that there was only one thing that she could do.

She had to tell House what happened….  
 **  
To be continued…**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

That night, House sat at his piano, letting his fingers drum softly against different keys as he played a random series of notes. On top of the piano sat a glass of scotch and ice that was now half full.

House reached out one hand while the other kept playing. He grabbed the glass of scotch and brought it to his lips, taking a quick sip before placing it back on top of the piano.

He was deep in thought, thinking about Cuddy. He had tried to get to the bottom of what was going on with her. He had confronted her but nothing came of it as he was too frustrated to push the subject further. He needed to regroup and come at this from a different angle. She was keeping something from him, that was obvious, but the question was: What?

He was annoyed at himself for not being able to figure out this particular puzzle, for not being able to get to the bottom of what was going on with Cuddy. That bothered him more than it should.

He was about to grab his drink once again when there was a light knocking on his door. He paused with his fingers just above the piano keys. He was silent for a moment before the knocking continued. He looked over at the clock on the wall. 9:43 it said. Nearly 10pm. So who the hell would be knocking at his door this late at night?

He groaned in annoyance at having his thought process interrupted by this person on the other side of his door.

He reached out, grabbed his cane, and then hopped awkwardly towards his front door.

"Wilson if this is you," He began to say loudly as he opened the door. "You—" He stopped suddenly when he saw Cuddy standing before him.

He would never have expected to see Lisa Cuddy, dean of medicine standing at his door this late at night.

"Cuddy," He said, the surprise evident in his voice.

He quickly looked her over. She wasn't holding any files, which meant that this wasn't about a new case. She looked nervous and was shaking slightly despite it being a warm night. Her arms crossed over her chest tightly.

"Are you cold?" He asked before he could stop himself. He was still in shock that she was there.

Cuddy shook her head slowly. "Can I…Can I come in?" She asked quietly, almost as if she was scared of what the answer might be.

House stepped back and gestured for her to come into his apartment. He watched as she slowly made her way to stand in front of his sofa. Her eyes darting around the room. She was nervous, and that both intrigued him and worried him slightly.

"Do you want a drink?" He asked as he closed the door before making his way over to her.

"No, I'm ok" She replied quickly.

There was a long awkward pause before House asked, "So…You wanna tell me why you're here?"

"I need to talk to you"

House nodded, "Ok," he said.

He walked over and sat on the sofa. He waited for her to join him but instead, she sat down on his piano bench, away from him. He took in her appearance once more. She seemed worried and nervous, but more than that, she seemed scared.

"What's happened?" He asked softly. She was starting to worry him.

"You," Cuddy started, pausing to take in a quick breath. Finally, after days of avoiding it, she made eye contact with him. "You asked me what was going on with me"

"Yeah," He nodded.

"I thought… I mean, I wanted to tell you" She told him. "I've wanted to tell you for so long, but I couldn't…"

Cuddy looked down and bit her bottom lip slightly.

"Why? What's—" House began to ask.

Cuddy suddenly raised her hand and looked back up at him. "Please don't talk. This is hard and I need to say this without you interrupting."

House nodded once more and closed his mouth. He sat back and waited for her to say what she needed to say.

"I'm not…I'm not trying to get pregnant anymore," She told him softly.

"Why?" House interrupted. "Because of what I said?"

"Please don't talk," Cuddy said again quickly. She closed her eyes and took in another breath. "I thought that I could get pregnant and what happened before wouldn't matter. I thought I could handle the guilt, but I was wrong…"

There was another pause and Cuddy looked down at the ground for a long moment. When she looked back up at House, she had tears shining in her eyes.

"Do you remember Michigan?" She asked him suddenly.

"Of course," He nodded. "Over sixty-four thousand lakes and ponds. Home of the Detroit Tigers baseball team. Known as the Wolverine state—" He rambled, saying random facts because he knew what she was really asking, but he wanted to hear her say it.

"—No," She said suddenly. "No. Do you remember _me_ in Michigan?"

House looked at her, his eyes softened ever so slightly. Was she seriously asking him that? How could he not remember her? He remembered every desperate whisper, every gentle murmur. Every moan, every gasp. He remembered how she felt. How she tasted. He would always remember.

"Are you asking me if I remember that night?" He asked, eyes locked with hers. "That night you told me never to mention when I signed the employment forms for your hospital? That night?"

Cuddy nodded slowly.

House let out a short sigh and softly told her, "I've always remembered it."

He looked down for a moment before turning his attention back to her, just in time to see her tears start to silently fall onto her cheeks.

"…After," Cuddy began, her voice shaking slightly. "After that night, I…. I was pregnant…"

House's eyes grew wide. His mind couldn't process what he had just heard. A part of him thought that maybe he had misheard her. The look on her face and the tears still rolling down her cheeks told him that he had heard her right.

After several moments, House is able to find his voice again. "Did you…did you have a…miscarriage?" He asked, swallowing nervously.

Cuddy took in a shaking breath and quickly shook her head.

"Did you have an abor—" He began to ask. Slightly angrier than he had expected to be.

"No," Cuddy said quickly. "I had, I had a little girl… Our little girl…" She ended in a whisper.

Cuddy's heart was breaking as she finally opened up and told House what had happened. He was watching her in silence, but she knew that he had a thousand different thoughts and feelings going through him.

"What…." House began, he tried to compose himself before asking, "What happened?"

"She-she didn't make it" Cuddy cried softly. Her voice breaking almost completely. "I was just thirty weeks, and she wasn't breathing and….." She trailed off, unable to keep speaking.

House slowly stood up and took a few awkward steps towards her.

"Why didn't you tell me?" He demanded softly. "You've had twenty years"

"I know," Cuddy nodded, looking up at him. "I know I should have…I wanted too. So many times. But I couldn't. It was all just too painful. I just wanted to forget. And then everything happened with your leg and—"

"—My leg is not a damn reason not to tell me!" House snapped, back angrily.

"I know," Cuddy sighed sadly. She stood up so that she was able to look him in the eyes again. "But it didn't seem right to tell you and the longer I left it the easier it was. I didn't want to bring it up if it wasn't going matter anymore"

"The hell Cuddy!" House yelled, making her jump slightly. "It didn't matter anymore? You were pregnant, with _MY_ kid. You gave birth to _MY_ baby! And you think that doesn't matter?"

"She died, House!" Cuddy cried. "What would telling you have done? It would have brought back painful memories, but it wouldn't have brought her back"

"You could have told me when it happened! When you were pregnant!"

"I know…" Cuddy said softly, blinking back her tears. "I should have…I'm sorry. I was young, and scared, and…."

She trailed off, sucking in a quick breath. House looked down at her. Usually, her tears would cause him to feel concern, would cause something in him to soften a bit. Not now, now as he looked at her, he could only feel anger and rage for what she had kept from him. He needed to get away from her before he said or did anything that he might regret.

Without a word, he turned and grabbed his cane from its spot on the sofa. Once he had it, he turned back to Cuddy and leaned towards her slightly.

"You need to leave," He said quietly through gritted teeth. Then he turned and made his way down his hallway.

"House!..." Cuddy called after him desperately. "House, please….!" She pleaded with him, but he ignored her.

Cuddy jumped as the noise of a door being slammed shut echoed in the silent apartment. She stayed on the spot, motionless and unable to speak for a few moments before she took a deep, shaky breath and left his apartment.

House, was in his bedroom and when he heard his front door closed, he turned and forcefully threw his cane against the wall, breaking it in two.

 _ ****House MD****_

Outside, Cuddy sat in her car. Her face in her hands as she let her tears fall. He hated her. She had to have known that he would. So why did it hurt more than she thought it would have?

After several minutes she composed herself. She took a few deep breaths before reaching for her cell phone. Her vision was blurry due to her tears, but she was still able to find the number she needed before bringing the phone to her ear.

"Mum?..." She asked when someone finally answered. "It's – it's me….I told him….House…I told him about the baby…"

 **To Be Continued….**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven:**

It was early next morning when Max entered the hospital to start her shift. She was surprised to find that Dr Cuddy wasn't in her office waiting for her.

Max sat at her desk and turned her computer on. She busied herself by going through the morning's emails. After around fifteen minutes she looked at the clock at the bottom of her computer screen. Still no sign of Cuddy. Max opened up Cuddy's appointments and checked to see if she had any meetings. She didn't.

Max frowned. Cuddy didn't seem like the type of person not to show up to work.

She grabbed her phone and dialled Cuddy's number. He ran several times before the voicemail clicked on. Max hung up and thought for a moment. Something was off, but she didn't know what. She didn't know Cuddy well enough yet to know what could be happening.

Suddenly, she heard her cell beep, letting her know that she had a new message. Grabbing her phone she saw that the message was from Cuddy.

 _'Max, I'm not feeling the best.  
Please reschedule my meetings.  
Cuddy.'_

Max shook her head slightly. Something didn't seem right about any of this. Something must have happened, but if Cuddy didn't talk to her then she couldn't know what that something was.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Later that same morning, Cameron, Foreman and Chase were sitting at the large table in the adjoining room of House's office.

Foreman and Chase were reading some medical papers while Cameron was making some notes about something.

Cameron looked up and turned to Chase and Foreman.

"Does anyone know where House is?" She asked them suddenly.

Both men looked up and shook their heads.

"No," Foreman replied. "But it's not unusual for him to be late"

"Yeah, but not this late." Said Cameron.

"Maybe," Chase began, thinking for a moment. "Maybe he's just hiding. You know, to avoid being in the clinic or something." He paused and shrugged one shoulder. "It's not like we have a case right now or anything."

Cameron folded her arms over her chest and leaned back against her chair. She pulled her phone out and dialled House's cell number. He rang out before it disconnected. She tried three more times but he never answered. Cameron then placed her phone down and frowned.

Foreman and Chase went back to reading. After five minutes, Foreman looked over at Cameron, who was still deep in thought.

"Why don't you ask Wilson?" He suggested to Cameron. "I'm sure if anything is happening with House, he will know."

Cameron nodded. "Yeah, good idea."

She pushed her seat back and then stood up. She walked out and headed towards Wilson's office.

"You think there might be something going on?" Chased asked Foreman after Cameron had gone.

"Probably not" Foreman replied. "But it's House, so…" and he shrugged before going back to his reading.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Wilson was sitting at his desk, looking over a patient's file when there was a knock at the door. He looked up and saw Cameron poking her head into his office.

"Cameron." He smiled at her and placed the file down. "How can I help you?"

"I was just wondering if you'd seen House today?" She asked, walking into the office.

Wilson thought for a moment and then shook his head. "No, not yet. Why?"

"We don't know where he is." Cameron replied, "I've tried calling but he won't answer."

"Do you guys have a case?"

"No, at least not right now." Cameron shrugged. "I just think it's weird that won't answer his phone. I thought maybe you knew something"

"Sorry, but I'll do some checking. Maybe Cuddy knows what's going on." Wilson paused for a moment before adding, "I'm sure he's just having a bad day with his leg. But I'll see what I can find."

"Ok, thanks, Wilson."

Cameron stood and left. After she had gone, Wilson picked up his phone and rang House's cell. He didn't answer. So Wilson tried his home phone. Again, no answer. Ok, now Wilson was starting to get curious.

He rang Cuddy's number but she didn't answer either. He thought for a moment and then dialled her assistant's number.

"Dr Cuddy's office. Max speaking." Came Max's greeting into the phone.

"Um, hi Max" Wilson began. "Do you know where Cuddy is? I can't seem to reach her."

"She's not here," Max replied. "She, ah, she sent me a text saying she was ill….but I don't know much else"

"Oh…" Wilson was stunned. Cuddy never took time off. He'd even caught her in her office one when she had a cold. "So she's not here?"

"No," Max paused and then asked "that's not normal, is it? I mean, it's not the impression that I got from Cuddy"

"No, it's not." Wilson nodded and then sighed. "I'm sure she's just really sick. Don't worry about it"

"Yeah. Oh hey, have you seen Dr House?" Max asked

"Um, no."

"Oh. Ok well, I heard that he hadn't shown up yet either."

"Well, no. But I'm sure I can find him." Wilson replied.

Then he hung up.

So both Cuddy and House were not at the hospital today. House he could understand. Like he had said to Cameron, it could just be his leg playing up. But Cuddy? Cuddy never took a sick day. Something was definitely going on.

Wilson stood, grabbing his phone and keys. He decided to go to House's apartment and find out what was going on with his best friend.

 ** _**House MD**_**

When Wilson got to House's apartment, he was surprised to find the door unlocked. He pushed it opened.

"House!" He called as he entered the apartment.

He saw his friend sitting on his sofa, a glass of scotch in one hand. Wilson moved to stand in front of House. He noticed that the other man's eyes were off like he wasn't focusing. He seemed dazed.

"House?" Wilson asked carefully.

House, having just noticed him, turned and looked up at Wilson.

"You're not the escort I ordered," House frowned

"Escort?"

"Shh, its code for hooker" House laughed slightly.

"Ah, House, are you…drunk?" Wilson asked as he raised an eyebrow quizzically.

"Pfft. Noooooooo" House shook his head. He paused and then looked back at Wilson, shrugging one shoulder. "Well, maybe."

"What the hell House!" Wilson exclaimed in shock. "What's happened? Is it your leg? You shouldn't be drinking just to get rid of your pain."

House scoffed before taking another mouthful from his drink. "It's not my leg, but thanks for the concern"

Wilson stared at House for several moments before he sighed and sat down on the furthest end of the sofa from House.

"Ok," Wilson began carefully. "If it's not your leg then why are you sitting here in the middle of the day getting drunk?"

House shrugged. He finished his drink and then stood up awkwardly and carefully limped towards his kitchen. An action made harder by his drunken state and the fact that he didn't have his cane.

Wilson frowned before following him.

"House, where's your cane?"

"I broke it" House replied shortly as he poured himself another drink.

"You broke it?" Wilson repeated in shock. Something had happened. Something bad. "House, what's going on? You're going to lose your job if you don't pull yourself together"

"Good," House muttered before taking a mouthful of his new drink. "Because I quit"

House turned and limped back out to his living room, grabbing anything he could with his right hand to balance himself as his left hand carried his drink.

Wilson stood in the kitchen completely stunned. After a moment he regained his composure and followed House once more.

"You quit? What do you mean you quit?" Wilson asked.

"I quit" House repeated. "I resign. I'm leaving. Not sure how else to say it" He shrugged before sitting back down.

"But…Why? What's happened? What's Cuddy going to say?"

House scoffed and shook his head. "She's the reason why I'm quitting. I can't work for her anymore."

"What?" Wilson asked, "why what happened?"

House didn't say anything. He just sat back and drank his drink, enjoying the buzz that was washing over him once more. He heard Wilson sigh but refused to look at him.

Wilson sat beside his friend and sighed softly once more.

"House, I'm sure whatever's happened between you and Cuddy isn't that bad" Wilson spoke softly. "I'm sure if you talk to her you two can—"

"No!" House snapped angrily. "I don't want to talk to her. I don't want to see her. In fact, you can let her know I quit. Save me from doing it"

"Ok, House, now you're starting to worry me," Wilson said concerned for his friend. "I mean, I've seen you and Cuddy have some pretty horrendous fights before, but you've never wanted to not see her again. Even after your leg."

"This is different" House muttered.

"But why? What happened? What could possibly be this bad?"

House was getting fed up and finally, he snapped angrily, "She had my kid and she didn't tell me!" He shouted.

Wilson sat shocked. His eyes wide as he stared at House. House was seething, drunk and angry as he sat on his sofa.

"…D-did you just s-say…?" Wilson stuttered. Surely he had misheard House. "Cuddy had your kid?"

"Yep," House said in a rushed, short breath.

"What? How?"

House turned and gave him an 'are you serious' look. Wilson shook his head quickly.

"No, I mean I know ' _how_ '," Wilson said quickly. "I meant when? You never told me you and Cuddy had hooked up? Did she have a miscarry?" he paused and thought for a moment. "Was that why she was crying in her office the other day?"

"Probably," House scoffed. "But not because she had a miscarriage"

"Then I don't—" Wilson began.

House cut him off quickly, "-She was pregnant twenty years ago. She kept this from me for twenty god damn years!" he said through gritted teeth.

Once again, Wilson was stunned into silence for several moments before he found his voice.

"I thought you didn't know Cuddy back then?" He asked.

House shook his head and rolled his eyes slightly. "You don't really need to _know_ someone to have sex with them. Trust me, I know."

"Ok…But you never mentioned that you two had ever had sex either."

"She told me not to," House replied with a shrug. "Which makes sense now. She didn't want her secret getting out."

"What happened? Did she give the baby up for adoption?" Wilson asked, a thousand questions running through his head.

House looked down into his drink. "She died…" He whispered. "She was stillborn…"

"Oh, House…" Wilson sighed, sad for his friend. "I'm sorry. It-ah, she was a girl?"

"Apparently," House shrugged before taking two big mouthfuls of his drink. His buzz wasn't as strong as it had been before Wilson had shown up.

The two men sat in silence for longer than fifteen minutes. House, trying to feel numb again, and Wilson, trying to understand and accept what he had been told.

After another few moments of silence went by, Wilson carefully asked: "What are you going to do now?"

House was silent for a moment before he said, "I told you. I quit"

"Are you sure that's the best?" Wilson asked. "I know you're angry now, House, but do you really think quitting your job is the right thing to do?"

"It's better than working for the woman who couldn't be bothered to tell me that she was pregnant with my child." House snapped back.

"You know Cuddy," Wilson began. "I'm sure she had her reasons"

House scoffed and finished the last of his drink.

"This was what? Twenty years ago?" Wilson continued, ignoring House. "She was young. She was probably scared, and hormonal."

"Stop defending her," House told him sternly.

"I'm not defending her." Wilson sighed. "I'm just pointing out that this is probably not all black and white. I mean, Cuddy had to give birth to a baby that had died…" he paused and took in a short breath. "I…I can't even imagine how painful that would have been…"

House sighed and closed his eyes.

"You're my friend. Stop bringing logic and reason into this" House sighed.

Wilson smiled slightly. There was the House he knew and… liked?

"House," Wilson sighed, "I am sorry that she didn't tell you. But do you really think staying here, drinking all day is the best thing you can do?"

House looked straight ahead for a long moment, then he shook his head.

No," He sighed softly.

Wilson, always the voice of reason, was once again right. Right now, House was angry. He knew that he was. He knew that he could not sit here for the rest of his life and wallow in his anger and grief. He would have to go back to work. He would have to see his fellows and work on cases. And eventually, he would have to talk to Cuddy.  
 **  
To Be Continued….**


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Notes:** _Again the medical information is probably not right as well as the maths._ ****

 **Chapter Eight** **:**

Two days later, House had stopped drinking and had managed to pull himself together, thanks, in big part to Wilson. Wilson had even gone out and bought him a new cane to use since his other cane was now in two pieces.

Then he got a call from Foreman, letting him know that they had a new case. So House pulled himself together and made his way to the hospital. He made sure not to go near Cuddy's office. He knew he would have to see her eventually. He just wasn't ready to do that just yet. He was still angry at her.

He didn't know if he could ever forgive her, but he also knew that Wilson was right when he said that he couldn't just leave his job. House lived for the puzzles of each case. He liked being smart enough to solve cases that stumped others, and he wasn't going to give that up because of Cuddy.

So no, House stood in front of his whiteboard, a marker in one hand and his cane in the other. Foreman, Cameron and Chase were all with him. Each running through different theories as to what could be wrong with their new patient.

This case was proving to be a good distraction.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Cuddy had been in her office all day. She knew that House and his team were working on a case and she really hoped that he would be able to figure out what was wrong without needing anything from her. She wasn't ready to see him yet. To see the hate in his eyes when he looked at her. Not that she didn't deserve it. She had lied to him, and she knew that she deserved his anger, his hate and so much more.

She needed to work out a new budget for the next board meeting, but she couldn't focus so doing her work was slightly impossible. Maybe she should have taken more days off work.

She knew that she had to try to move on. She had work to do and a hospital to run. She couldn't live in the past and she couldn't put her life on hold.

Cuddy was staring vacantly at her sofa, when Max walked in, carrying a takeaway coffee cup and a brown paper bag.

"Hi," Max said. "Are you alright?" She asked.

Cuddy turned and offered Max a small, sad smile.

"Yes, I'm fine," Cuddy said with a nod.

"Are you sure?" Max asked with concern. "You're not still sick or anything?"

"No, no, it's just a busy day," Cuddy replied with a sigh.

"Oh, ok." Max paused and then remembered why she had come in. "I brought you these," she said, placing the coffee and bag on Cuddy's desk. "Coffee and a low-fat orange poppy seed muffin. You looked like you could use a little treat."

Cuddy smiled, generally surprised by Max's kindness. None of her other assistants had ever taken it upon themselves to reach out because they thought she could use it.

"Thank you, Max"

Max shrugged, "Don't worry about it. Um is there anything you want me to do?"

Cuddy thought for a moment before shaking her head, "No. I'm just going to wort out this quarter's budget. So, just keep an ear out for the phone and check any emails."

"So the usual?" Max asked, grinning slightly.

Cuddy couldn't help but let out a half sigh, half laugh. "Yeah."

Max nodded and turned to leave. Before she got to the door, Cuddy had a thought.

"Max?" She called. When Max turned back around, Cuddy continued. "Um, Dr House has a case. I'm going to be pretty busy, so could you just…keep an ear out? Check on Dr House and his case from time to time to see if they need me for anything."

"Oh, um, yeah. Sure" Max nodded.

Max walked out and closed the door behind her.

Max wasn't sure what was going on, but she knew that something was happening between Cuddy and House. First, there was the weird encounter at the cafeteria on her first day. Even she could feel the awkwardness between them. Then they both vanished for a few days before coming back like nothing had happened, and now they seemed to be avoiding each other.

Max had done some research and had heard from several nurses that it wasn't uncommon for House to hide from Cuddy. Mostly to avoid having to spend time in the clinic. But she had never heard anyone say that Cuddy went out of her way to avoid House.

Something was going on and Max was going to get to the bottom of it. She had to. It was part of the reason why she was here. To get all the information she could on House and Cuddy.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House was in his office, his team had already gone and ran some tests and had gotten the patient's medical history. Now they were all back in his office, still trying to work out what was wrong.

They were discussing the case when Max walked in. House ignored her. He was sure that Cuddy had sent her and if that was the case, then he didn't care why she was there.

"How's the case going?" Max asked. She looked over the information on the whiteboard.

"Ah," Cameron blinked in surprise and Max's question. She didn't think she would be able to explain the case to an assistant with no medical background.

House ignored her but Chase looked over at her and shrugged.

"We're a bit stumped" Chase admitted.

"Stop chatting up, Cuddy's assistant." House snapped. "And focus on the case."

"I'm not!" Chase exclaimed.

"Cuddy's assistant has a name you know?" Max shot back, folding her arms over her chest.

House scoffed, "Yeah but no one cares."

"-Maybe it's Aagenaes syndrome?" Foreman thought loudly, trying to get the conversation back to the case.

Cameron shook her head, "The changes of it being Aagenaes is one in sixty-four million. It's gotta be something else"

Suddenly Max scoffed in disbelief. All four doctors turned to look at her.

"You have an opinion, Dr Cuddy's assistant with a name I do not care about?" House asked, raising an eyebrow quizzically.

Max pointed to the whiteboard and shrugged one shoulder. "I'm sorry," She said. "It's just that if something has a one in sixty-four million chances of happening, then it can happen all the time." She explained slowly. "I mean, there's what? Over six billion people in the world so that would make, like, over ninety-three percent worldwide. Which is pretty high if you think about it."

House looked at her stunned, "How did you-?" He began to ask.

Max shrugged as if she had just said something that should be common knowledge. "Math." She smiled. "Anyway, I better get going. Good luck with the case."

Max turned and left and House felt himself smirk slightly. After a moment, he turned back to his fellows.

"Let's run tests for Aagenaes." He told them.  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

It was late in the afternoon and House was sitting at his desk, leaning back in his chair as he tossed his ball up high in the air and caught it again.

The case had been solved. Max was partially right. It wasn't Aagenaes, but it was close. House had not expected Cuddy's assistant to be that smart. Usually, he would take that information to Cuddy, and ask her about Max. But that would mean talking to Cuddy and he wasn't ready to do that yet. Thankfully this case had not required any sort of permission from the Dean of medicine.

House was distracted by his thoughts so much that he did not notice the woman who came into his office.

"Ahem," The woman cleared her throat loudly.

House caught his ball in mid throw and looked up at the woman. She was an older looking woman and looked very proper.

"Dr House?" She asked.

"Nope." House shook his head. "Try the office next door."

"It says Dr House on the door." The woman pointed out. "Dr House I'm Arlene."

House raised an eyebrow, "And that means?..."

The woman sighed and sat down in a chair opposite House.

"Arlene Cuddy. Lisa's mother." The woman replied.

House's eyes widened for a split second. Then he composed himself and sat back defensively.

"I think you've got the wrong office. Dr Cuddy's office is downstairs."

"I'm not here to see my daughter," Arlene replied. "I'm here to see you"

"And?" House asked, annoyance dripping from his tone.

Arlene ignored his tone and continued, "I'm here because my daughter called me and told me that she'd spoken to you."

House felt his anger building up inside of him once more. How dare Cuddy send her mother to talk to him about this.

"And what do you want?" He demanded. "I've heard everything I need to from _your_ daughter-"

"—Not everything." Arlene interrupted calmly. "There are things she doesn't know. But I wanted to tell you first. I can tell that Lisa is very upset so I wanted to save her the grief."

"Ok," House sighed in frustration. "So tell me. What don't I know?"

There was a long pause before Arlene Cuddy answered him. Her voice was calm as she spoke. "The baby, your daughter. She wasn't stillborn. She survived."

 **To Be Continued…**


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note:** _Most of the dialogue is not mine. It's from another show (same show I got the idea from) and I just re-wrote it for the House MD characters._ ****

 **Chapter Nine**

The sun had just set in the sky and Cuddy was sitting at home on her sofa. A small throw wrapped around her shoulders as she drank a mug of coffee. She had managed to go the whole day without seeing or talking to House. She was going to call that a victory, even though it didn't feel like one.

She was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of someone knocking at her door. She sighed and stood up. She was in no mood for any visitors. Not tonight. She stood and placed her coffee down on the small table in front of her. The throw fell off her shoulder's as she walked to the door.

She moved over to the door and was surprised when she opened it and saw her mother standing before her.

"Mom?" Cuddy asked, stunned. "What are you doing here? I didn't know you were coming?"

"I thought after that phone call that I better come" Arlene replied.

Cuddy nodded and stepped back, allowing her mother room to walk past her.

"Do you want a coffee?"

"No, I'm fine. Thank you" Arlene nodded. "but we do need to talk."

Cuddy nodded. She was sure she knew that this would be about. Her mother had always told her to never tell House about the baby as it had happened so long ago.

"I've already spoken with House, Mom" Cuddy sighed, moving back to sit on the sofa. "It's done. I can't take it back."

Arlene nodded and joined her daughter on the sofa.

"I know," Arlene said calmly. "But you didn't tell him everything"

"How would you know mom?" Cuddy asked, rolling her eyes slightly. "You weren't there."

"I know because there are things that you don't know. About what happened."

"Like what?" Cuddy asked, turning to look at her mother's eyes.

Arlene took a breath, before turning to her daughter. "Your daughter wasn't stillborn. She's alive." She told her.

Cuddy's face fell. She couldn't have heard her mother right. There was no way she heard her right.

"H-How?" She asked in a quiet, broken voice. "How can she still be alive? You-you told me she died." She closed her eyes for a moment and shook her head. "No. No this doesn't make any sense"

"I can explain—" Arlene began but Cuddy wasn't finished.

"No!" Cuddy exclaimed angrily "No she was stillborn, 'cause you looked me in the eye and told me she'd gone"

"That's not what I said," Arlene replied, shaking her head slightly.

"No that's exactly what you said!" Cuddy snapped.

"No," Arlene shook her head again. "You'd thought she'd gone. I just didn't correct you."

Cuddy's mouth dropped open. She stared at her mother.

Arlene continued, "You were lying in that bed after that horrible labor" She explained as calmly as she could. "You were drifting in and out of consciousness, and when you woke up, and you didn't hear her crying because they'd taken her away because she wasn't breathing. Then you looked up at me and you assumed that she was stillborn"

"And you didn't correct me?!" Cuddy managed to choke out.

She stood up, shaking slightly with shock and anger. She moved away from the sofa and her mother before turning back around. She bit her lower lip slightly to stop herself from crying.

"That was the worst moment of my life," Cuddy admitted, sniffing back her tears. "The worst, and you lied to me. How could you do that, Mom?"

"You were so young," Arlene sighed as she stood up and walked over to her daughter. "You had your whole life ahead of you." She stopped and reached a hand out towards Cuddy's shoulder. "We talked about adoption. Remember?"

Cuddy quickly pulled away from her mother's grasp.

"And I told you, I couldn't go through with that!" Cuddy cried, a single tear escaping down her cheek.

"Yes, I know that," Arlene replied. "You were struggling with the idea. But, I thought you'd be grateful."

"Grateful!" Cuddy yelled. She could not believe what her mother was telling her. And that she was being so damn calm and composed about it. "That was my choice to make, Mom. Not yours!"

"If you'd left that hospital then and there your future would have been decided for you." Arlene shot back. "You would have been a single mother with a small child tied to you. Your chances of becoming a doctor would have dramatically decreased because you wouldn't have been able to study as much as you did. And House, well do you really think he would have been there for you?"

"You don't know him!" Cuddy snapped back.

"I've been around. I've met men like him before." Arlene replied as she folded her arms over her chest. "When you told him was he supportive?"

"I lied to him, mom. He was hurt!"

"And he would have been hurt back then too! And you were too young to take that responsibility!"

Cuddy scoffed through her tears. "And who are you to decide that for me?" She demanded.

"Because I'm your mother!" Arlene shouted back. "And I was trying to protect you! Look at what you've managed to accomplish. You think you would have been able to do all this if you'd been a single mother? No! I wanted better for you. And I wanted better for your baby!"

"Oh god," Cuddy breathed and turned back to face her mother fully. "You...you planned the whole thing? Didn't you?"

Arlene nodded her head and looked down briefly. "I lined up a…opportunity."

Cuddy shook her head and let out a sound between a cry and a gasp.

"I was going to tell you after the baby was born," Arlene continued. "But you kept making this assumption-"

"-Oh, stop saying that!" Cuddy shouted as she threw her hands up in frustration. "As if that makes this all ok."

"I'm trying to tell you how it happened!"

"Well, where is she?" Cuddy asked in a desperate tone. Her tears still flowing freely down her face. "What happened to her?"

"The doctor was a friend of a friend," Arlene explained. "I told him that we wanted the child adopted, quietly, and he said he knew of a couple who were desperate to have a child"

Cuddy was pacing around the room, trying to get her thoughts together. She wanted to scream. She wanted to shout. She suddenly stopped pacing as a thought occurred to her.

"The town that you took me to…" Cuddy slowly stated as her thoughts came together. "To give birth…that's why you wanted me to give birth there. And you insisted that I give birth at the doctor's private surgery instead of the hospital…"

Arlene looked at her daughter and slowly nodded.

"So," Cuddy continued, swallowing quickly. "So, I was lying there, crying my eyes out and my little girl was alive? And you knew it?"

"Lisa, I never met for you to get hurt—" Arlene began softly.

Cuddy interrupted her with a half scoff, half cry of exasperation.

"I've had to live with this every day." Arlene continued.

"You've had to live with it!" Cuddy shouted.

Cuddy turned away from her mother, unable to look at her anymore. Arlene stepped forward and reach out to touch Cuddy's shoulder again. When Cuddy felt her touch, she spun around quickly and shouted: "Don't touch me!".

Arlene pulled back and sighed, "Lisa, would you talk to me please?" She begged her daughter softly.

Cuddy shook her head rapidly, tears flowing freely. "Just get out."

"Lisa-"

"GET OUT!" Cuddy screamed.

Arlene nodded and turned and walked out the door.

As soon as Cuddy heard the front door close, she let out a painful cry before collapsing on the floor in a heap. Her sobs shaking her entire body…  
 **  
To Be Continued…..**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

House was on his bike, driving a little bit over the speed limit and heading in the direction of Cuddy's place. He had been sitting in his office, completely stunned when he finally came too and made his way out of the hospital with one purpose in mind. And that was to find Cuddy and talk to her.

 _"There are things she doesn't know"_

Arlene had told him. And then she said that one sentence that changed his entire life, more than his leg pain, and more than Cuddy keeping the pregnancy a secret from him.

 _"Your daughter. She wasn't stillborn. She survived."_

He had been so completely floored by those words, that he had zoned out. He wasn't even sure when Arlene had left his office. Or if she had continued talking or not. All he knew was that once his brain started functioning at its normal pace once again, she was no longer sitting in front of him. Which was a good thing because at this time if he did see her again he couldn't know what he would do to her.

He was still mad at Cuddy for what she had done and for lying to him. And right now he was on his way to her. Maybe her mother would be there and he would be able to let them both hear how angry he was. He couldn't really find the right words to describe how angry and betrayed he felt by these two Cuddy women. Both for different reasons.

All he knew was that he was angry and on that thought alone, he continued towards Cuddy's house.

 ** _**House MD**_**

When House finally pulled up in front of Cuddy's place, his mind was still racing. He grabbed his cane and limped as fast as he could towards the front door. His leg was throbbing painfully but he pushed it to the back of his mind.

When he reached the door he raised his hand to start pounding on it loudly, when a noise from inside stopped him. It was the sound of someone sobbing uncontrollably. He moved to the window and through the curtains he could just make out Cuddy's form on the floor against a wall. She was crying uncontrollably and her body was shaking.

And then it hit him. Her mother had told her about the baby. About their baby. Cuddy, who had thought that her baby daughter had died, had just found out that she was alive.

He had done a lot of shitty things in his life. A lot of those things to Cuddy herself. But knowing that she was like this, her heartbreaking, when only a minute ago he was furious at her… It was the worst thing he'd ever done.

He swallowed the lump that was forming in his throat before reaching for the door handle. It was locked. He went to knock but knew that she wouldn't hear him anyway. And if she did he doubted she would answer. Then he remembered her spare key. He quickly looked around. He knew she wouldn't still keep in the same place as before. His eyes settled on the porch light. On a hunch, he reached up and felt his fingers come into contact with something small, hard and bumpy. He curled his fingers around it and pulled it towards him. It was a key.

 _'_ _Oh, Cuddy,'_ He thought almost fondly and a bit grateful. _'You predictable girl'_

He slowly opened the door and entered her home. He closed the door behind him, pausing for a moment and closing his eyes because the cries coming from Cuddy where piercing his heart.

He slowly limped towards her cautiously. As if he would break her more by getting too close to her.

"Cuddy…" He whispered hoarsely when he was standing right in front of her.

She didn't say anything. Didn't move. She just continued to cry.

House drew in a quick sharp breath before he moved to her side. He slowly and carefully leaned against the wall before painfully lowering himself next to her. A slight hiss escaped his lips as he stretched his legs out.

He turned his attention back to Cuddy. Carefully and almost timidly, he reached out and lightly brushed his fingers against the skin of her wrist.

He didn't want to push her, and he didn't know what reaction to expect from her.

"Cuddy…" he sighed.

She turned quickly and before he could meet her eyes she turned and collapsed against him, crying into the crook of his neck.

On an instinct that he didn't know he had, House wrapped his arms tightly around her and pulled her tighter against his body. He brought his lips to her temple and pressed them against her skin.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House wasn't sure how long they had been sitting like that. He felt dampness on his skin where her tears had fallen against him. He realised that Cuddy had stopped shaking and noticed that she'd cried herself to sleep. He let out a low deep sigh and leaned his head back against the wall. Cuddy's body fell against him, proving to him that she was in a deep slumber. His eyes moved and he looked at her ceiling for a long moment.

He looked back down at her and knew that he couldn't leave her like this on the floor. He shifted her weight against him so that most of her was against the middle of his chest. Then he wrapped one arm around her and used the other hand to help him shimmy up the wall.

He had to grit his teeth forcefully to stop from groaning in pain. The pressure on his leg was killing him, but he pushed it to the back of his mind. Once he was standing he looked down at Cuddy and in the new position he could see her face more clearly. She was paler than normal and the evidence of her tears clearly on her cheeks.

Still holding her against him with one arm, he bent slightly and slid his other arm under her legs and then pulled her up so that he was cradling her in his arms. Carefully he made his way towards her sofa.

As he moved, he couldn't help but breathe in her scent. There was something familiar and satisfying about having her in his arms but he pushed those thoughts away as quickly as they had come.

Carefully, he lowered her onto the sofa. She didn't make a noise, nor did she move. The slowly rising and falling movement of her chest the only indication that she was alive and breathing. He stood back up and looked around briefly before spotting the wrap that was on the floor. He scooped it up and gently covered her body with it.

Once he was sure that she was fine, he hobbled back towards where they had been and grabbed his cane. Then he made his way to her bedroom. It was late and he knew that they needed to talk. Staying the night in her bed was his only option. If she woke up and decide to move to her bedroom then he would willingly take the sofa instead. But since his leg would not allow him to travel the distance to the bedroom with her in his arms, him taking the bed seemed more logical.

He sat down on the edge of her bed and placed his cane between his legs. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the familiar orange bottle. He tipped out four Vicodin pills and dry swallowed each one. He wasn't sure which pain he wanted to get rid of. The unbearable throbbing pain in his leg…or the pain in his chest…  
 **  
To Be Continued…**


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note** _: Hopefully I haven't got dates too mixed up for the past events. But I probably do._ ****

 **Chapter Eleven** ****

The next morning as House woke up, it took him a moment to remember where he was as he did not recognise anything. Then the memory of the night before came slamming back to him. He groaned and rubbed a hand over his face.

He had managed to get a bit of sleep last night but not enough and he was still exhausted.

He stood up, rolled his shoulders and neck and then grabbed his cane. A part of him was wondering if he'd be able to escape out of Cuddy's bedroom window. But the other part of him knew that they had to talk. So he made his way out of the bedroom and towards the living room.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House walked into the living room just in time to see Cuddy begin to stir herself.

Her eyes slowly fluttered open and he saw the confusion on her face. She slowly sat up and looked around the room.

"Morning," House said calmly. Just loud enough for her to know that he was there.

She jumped slightly and turned to look at him.

"House?" She asked, surprised. "What? What are you doing here? Why am I on the sofa?"

"I was here last night." He told her. Then he narrowed his eyes "You don't remember?"

Cuddy shook her head very slowly. She remembered talking to her mother, and she remembered crying…But she didn't remember House at all.

There was a long pause. Cuddy sat up and curled her legs underneath her. She looked down at her hands and House wondered if she was waiting for him to speak first.

"Cuddy-" He began but she cut him off.

"-I have to tell you something—"

"-I know," House sighed. "Your mother came to see me yesterday."

Cuddy's eyes widened in surprise. She had not expected him to say that. Suddenly she felt the tears pull in her eyes again.

"Ah, why don't you go and have a quick shower," House suggested as he looked away. He didn't want to see her cry again. "I'll, um, I'll make us some breakfast."

She bit her lower lip and nodded her head carefully. Silently, she stood up and headed towards her bathroom. House watched her go before he made his way into her kitchen.  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

It was at least half an hour later when Cuddy returned.

She was wearing grey sweatpants and a t-shirt. Her slightly still wet hair curled around her face.

Normally, House would have made a comment on her choice of clothing. Especially as he was used to seeing her in skirts, or power suits. Not to mention the high heels and low cut tops he was accustomed to seeing her in. This look was very different.

"Long shower," He stated.

"Emotional one," She replied. Letting him know, in not so many words that she had been crying again.

House gave her a quick nod but didn't say anything. Then he waved a hand at her small dining room table, where two plates of toast were. Cuddy sat down and offered him a small smile.

"Thanks," She sighed. "But I'm not hungry"

Again House nodded. He knew the feeling.

He walked past her and headed to the kitchen. He came back shortly after holding two mugs in his hand. He placed one in front of her and then turned and sat down opposite her.

They sat in silence for a while, each drinking the coffee.

"House, I'm…I'm sorry," Cuddy said, looking down. "I – I should have told you that I was pregnant. If I had, we'd…we'd still have her and…"

"What happened?" House asked. "All I was told was that she didn't die… But you thought she had?..." He asked, making sure that he had all the right information.

Tears started to pull in Cuddy's eyes again. She sniffed quickly and willed the tears to stay back.

"My mother arranged for a secret adoption," Cuddy told him. "Then she made me believe that our baby had died."

"She told you she'd died." It was a statement, not a question.

"Not exactly," Cuddy sighed. "She says that I _assumed_ that she had died. She just never bothered to tell me that she was alive."

House looked down at his coffee for a moment. He suddenly felt anger and disgust rising up at him at the thought of Cuddy's mother.

"How though? You weren't underage at the time," House said thoughtfully. "She would have needed your approval to go through with an adoption."

"It wasn't an official adoption, House. I guess it was all under the radar. No records. No paperwork."

House sat in thought for a moment before asking, "Didn't you ask to see the body? Or the death certificate?"

"I couldn't bring myself to," Cuddy replied, almost in a whisper. "It was too painful. I spent weeks crying my eyes out after it happened. Seeing a body… or even the death certificate…it would have made it worse."

House nodded and looked away. He knew that he was still angry at her, but from her tears last night he knew that dealing with the supposed death of her daughter was a breaking point for her. He couldn't hold it against her anymore, even if he wanted too. Which he didn't.

"When was she born?" He asked suddenly, turning back to look at her.

Cuddy smiled a weak but genuine smile. "September fourteenth."

"1986," House nodded. He could easily work that one out. "She'd be – _Is_ , nineteen. Almost twenty. I feel old"

Cuddy let out a small scoff. She was thankful he was trying to make a joke considering the circumstances.

"Yeah.." Cuddy smiled. Then her smiled faded and the hurt returned to her eyes. "And we missed it…"

"Did your mother say why she did it?" House asked.

Cuddy made a sound that was part scoff of disbelief and half groan of sadness.

"She said she did it for me," She replied, shaking her head in disgust. "That my life wouldn't be as good as it is if I'd been a single mother. That she wanted better for me, and she wanted better for my daughter. But I… I just can't believe she did it. That was my _daughter._ Her first _grandchild_ and she just gave her away as if she were nothing…" Her voice trailed off becoming hoarse. "And when Julia, my sister, had kids…Mum was so happy. She loves those kids. But she never ever said a word. Not one word that my daughter was still alive…"

They sat in silence once more. This time for longer, until they'd both finished their coffees.

"Is she why you didn't tell me?" House asked softly, just above a whisper. "When you were pregnant."

Cuddy looked over at him. Her eyes now glistening with unshed tears of guilt.

"Partially, but not the whole reason," She began to explain. "My mother didn't have a high opinion of you after she found out that we were together and then you never called. Then the pregnancy was hard…stressful. She was in my ear a lot and I guess I let her play on my fears." She paused and swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. "I was going to tell you though after she was born. I thought…if I told you while I was pregnant that there'd be the chance that you'd push me away. I was so emotional and the thought of having the confirmation that I was just another notch on your belt—"

"—Is that what you think you were?" House asked stunned. Eyes wide. She had to know that she had meant more than that. Didn't she?

"-It was too much." She continued, ignoring him. "I didn't want you to reject us. But then I realised that it wasn't about me, or us. It was about the _baby_. So I thought…if I came to you with the baby then the pregnancy wouldn't be important. That you'd just look at our daughter and you'd love her as much as I did after carrying her for almost nine months…"

The tears that Cuddy had tried so hard to hold back were not freely falling onto her cheeks.

"Cuddy," House breathed. "You were _never_ just a 'notch on my belt'. And I would have supported you through the pregnancy. I would have been there." He told her firmly, holding her gaze.

"I know you would have been there." She sniffed, Still ignoring his comments on their night together. "I know that now. I'm so sorry, House. I should have told you before now. I can say that it was never the right time but that would just be an excuse. You have every right to hate me."

House let out a low breath and leaned back in his chair.

"Hate's a strong word."

"But, it's the right word," Cuddy stated, as she rubbed the back of her hand over her eyes.

House thought for a moment. Yes, he was angry at Cuddy for not telling him that she'd been pregnant, and for keeping it a secret for this long. But did he hate her? He let his eyes run over her, taking in her soft features. No. No, he could never hate her.

"No," He sighed. "I don't hate you, Cuddy. I'm hurt. I'm angry. But I don't hate you."

The corners of Cuddy's mouth turned up ever so slightly in the tiniest of smiles. House couldn't help but offer her the same small smile back at her.

"I should go," He announced after several minutes went by in silence. "Go home. Have a shower."

He still had thousands of questions for her, but he decided to leave it here for now. He knew that she was dealing with a lot and he didn't want to push her.

"Ok," Cuddy nodded.

Together they both stood from the table. House grabbed his cane and then he made his way to her front door. Cuddy following him.

"House," Cuddy called softly just as his hand reached out for the doorknob. "What are you going to do now?"

House paused, both hands resting on top of his cane. He slowly looked over his shoulder at her.

"I'm going to find our daughter," He replied firmly. "What are you going to do?"

 **To be continued…**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

The following Monday, House made his way towards Wilson's office.

It had been two days since he had spoken to Cuddy at her place. They had spoken once since then and that was mostly House trying to find out what Cuddy remembered the day she gave birth.

House had meant what he had said, he was going to track down their daughter. Not because he had this particular desire to become a father, but because the part of him that couldn't let anything be unfinished wanted him too. He was a man that spent his life solving puzzles, putting the last pieces together. So having a daughter out there meant that he had pieces of his own puzzle missing.

The question that had him stumped right now was – how do you track down a girl who was adopted twenty years ago when there was no record of the adoption?

Which was why he was heading to see Wilson. He hoped his friend could help him with something.

House barged into Wilson's office, not caring that he was with someone.

"I need a consult," House announced loudly.

"Ah," Wilson began startled. "I'm with a patient," he gestured to the man in front of him. "Can it wait?"

House lifted his cane and pointed it to the man sitting opposite Wilson. "Is he dying?"

"Am I?" The man asked, eyes wide as he looked at Wilson.

"Ah, no, no" Wilson replied quickly.

"Then he can wait." Said House. "Meanwhile, this is important."

"House—" Wilson began to protest but House cut him off.

"—It's about the sexual harassment case against you. You really should control yourself around male patients."

Wilson's mouth dropped opened.

"Ah, I have to go." The man announced before almost running past House and out the door.

House closed the door and took a seat in the chair the man had just left. When he looked over at Wilson, he saw that his friend was glaring at him.

"Was that really necessary?" He demanded. "Now he probably won't come back for his follow up appointment."

House shrugged, "You said he wasn't dying. He'll find another doctor. You're not that special, Wilson."

Wilson groaned in annoyance. Not that he shouldn't be used to House pulling stunts like this.

"What did you want, House?"

"Do you know any private investigators?"

"What?" Wilson asked, his brows knitting together in confusion. "I thought you said you needed a consult?"

"I do," House nodded. "I need to consult you on whether or not you know any private investigators."

Wilson thought for a moment and looked at House puzzled.

"Ah, I don't think so." He answered.

"Seriously? None of your ex-wives sent a private investigator after you and one point?" House asked, leaning forward in his chair slightly.

"Well, if they did, it's not like I would have the information."

House sat back in the chair and started twirling his cane. He was deep in thought and was no longer paying any attention to Wilson.

"Why do you want a private investigator?" Wilson asked curiously. "For a case? A patient?"

"I need to find someone…" House stated, still twirling his cane.

"Oh." Wilson sighed. "Who?"

House stopped twirling his cane and turned to look at Wilson.

"My daughter" He replied. "Mine and Cuddy's"

"What!" Wilson shouted. If he hadn't already been sitting down he would have needed too. "But you – I thought you said the baby had died?"

"I did." House nodded. "She didn't", he shook his head.

"Wow…."

"That's all you can say?" House asked, raising one eyebrow. "I just tell you I have a kid out there and all you can say is 'Wow'?"

"Holy mother of god, wow" Wilson stated.

House rolled his eyes.

"How? Didn't Cuddy tell you that the baby died?"

"She did tell me that."

"So…so Cuddy lied?"

"No," House shook his head. "She thought she had died."

"I'm so confused," Wilson said, shaking his head in disbelief. "How did Cuddy think the baby died? How does that happen?"

"Her mother made her think that she had died" House replied, his tone dripping with disgust. "Then she put her up for adoption."

"Oh…Wait, what?"

House sighed loudly and rolled his eyes again.

"Cuddy's mother made _her_ -Cuddy, think that _she_ -the baby, had died. Then _she_ -Cuddy's mother, put _her_ -the baby, up for adoption."

"…Wow…" Wilson sighed again.

They sat in silence for a while. Wilson was processing all this new information.

"When did she find out?" Wilson asked.

House shrugged, "A few days ago. Her mother came and told me first."

"Wow…"

"Are you going to say that all day? Did my news break your vocabulary?"

"I'm sorry, House. But you have a kid out there. You. This is huge!"

"That's what she said." House joked.

Wilson smiled for a moment. Then he frowned. "How's Cuddy?" He asked. "It must have been shocking to find out a child you thought was dead was actually alive."

House shrugged one shoulder and looked down. "She's….upset…"

"Well yeah." Wilson nodded. "So… what are you going to do now?"

"I told you. I'm going to find her."

"Is that what Cuddy wants too?"

"Well duh," House rolled his eyes at Wilson's stupid question. "She is her child."

Wilson nodded. "So, have you two talked? Did she say why she never told you?"

"She was gonna tell me after the baby was born" House replied, looking down. "Then she thought the baby had died, so didn't want to tell me and bring up the memories."

"How are you going to find her?" Wilson asked after a pause. "Do you have a lot of information about her?"

"None," House replied. "Cuddy can only remember the town her mother took her too. Not much else."

"Wo—"

"—Do not say wow again!" House warned, shooting his friend and a stern look.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Later that day, Cuddy was in her office. She was trying to focus her attention on the budget report that needed to be finished, but she found her mind wandering off all the time. She wondered what her daughter looked like. If she had House's eyes? Or hers? She wondered if she was happy? If she'd had a good life.

She wondered what might have been if she had just had the courage to tell House that she'd been pregnant. Would they have gotten together? Would they have been apart, but raised their daughter together? Would she still be Dean of medicine of a major hospital? Would she have been a good mother? So many what-ifs ran through her mind. She was so distracted that she didn't see her mother coming into the room.

"Lisa," Arlene said as she stood in front of her daughter's desk.

Lisa looked up and frowned when she saw her mother.

"What are you doing here?" Cuddy demanded.

"You haven't answered any of my calls-" Arlene began

"-I wonder why that would be?" Cuddy scoffed.

"I want to talk"

"Well, I don't want to talk to you." Cuddy snapped angrily.

"Let me explain—"

"-How on earth can you justify what you did?" Cuddy demanded.

"It's been so hard to live with this guilt for so long."

It's been hard for you!" Cuddy shouted, stunned.

**House MD**

House was making his way towards Cuddy's office. After speaking with Wilson, he decided to speak with Cuddy about his idea to hire a private investigator. He had no doubt that she would want to find their kid, he just wanted to make sure they kept each other up to date with what was happening.

Has he got closer he saw a woman also walk into Cuddy's office. He only saw the back of her head but he knew who it was. It was Cuddy's mother. He tightened his grip on his cane and followed her into Cuddy's office.

**House MD**

"I'm sorry, Lisa," Arlene told her daughter.

"Oh, could you stop! Please!" Cuddy said as she held her hands up in frustration.

House entered the office and made a show of slamming the door to get Arlene's attention. Both women turned to look at him. He noticed that Cuddy was on the verge of tears again, but this time they were due to anger and not just sadness.

"What do you want?" Arlene asked him.

"Mum-" Cuddy began but House interrupted her.

"I'm here to talk to Cuddy about _my_ daughter!" House snapped back. "You know, the one _you_ gave away" anger dripping from his words.

"Don't make me the only one in the wrong here" Arlene snapped back, turning to face House more. "You were never there for her. I was just trying to protect her."

"I wasn't _there_ because I didn't know that she was pregnant!" House hissed angrily.

"Right," Arlene scoffed. "Because all you were after was one night of fun. And then you left her without so much as a phone call"

"You don't know anything about me! So don't assume you know what happened back then!"

"If you couldn't have been bothered to at least call her—" Arlene began to say angrily.

"Enough!" Cuddy shouted. She stood from her chair and slammed both hands down on her desk. "Mum, stop trying to place the blame onto House! As if anything he did or didn't do could be a reason for what you did!"

"I was just trying to protect you," Arlene said. "He—"

"—He what?" House demanded.

Arlene turned to House once more.

"Mum, stop trying to deflect. You made the choice to lie to me about my baby. Not House." Cuddy said angrily.

"Lisa," Arlene began, she reached out and tried to reach her daughter's hand.

Cuddy pulled her hand away forcefully from her mother's touch. Arlene pulled back, looking a bit hurt.

"I am sorry. If I could go back and change it I would."

"Tell me something?" House asked suddenly. Arlene turned back to him. "If Cuddy hadn't told me about it, would you have ever come clean?"

"Of course-" Arlene replied.

"-No you wouldn't have!" House snapped. "You had nearly twenty years to tell her. You would have just kept this secret until you died!"

"Look, House!" Arlene snapped, pointed a finger angrily towards him. "I may not know you but you sure as hell don't know me. I would have told her."

"No," Cuddy said suddenly.

"What?" Arlene asked confused.

"House is right," Cuddy continued. "You never were going to tell me."

"I-" Arlene began but Cuddy cut her off.

"No don't," Cuddy sighed. "I don't want to hear it."

"I'm still your mother." Arlene protested.

"No!" Cuddy snapped. "A mother is supposed to let their kids make their own choices. Guide them along the way," She shook her head and looked up slightly in disbelief and disgust. "Not take the biggest decisions of their life out of their hands!"

"I did what I thought was the best for you at the time," Arlene sighed.

House scoffed irritably. He'd never met Arlene Cuddy before, but he was starting to see that she was a piece of work.

"No, you just wanted to control what happened."

"That's not – I thought I was doing the right thing by you, Lisa"

"I thought I'd lost my little girl forever." Cuddy sighed, fighting very hard to keep her tears at bay. "Last night, I tried to picture her face. But I can't do that, because I never saw her, Mum. I never got to hold her. I never heard her cry."

"I know-" Arlene began.

"No, you don't know!" Cuddy shouted. "I missed her first steps. I missed her first words, her first day at school. I missed everything because of you!"

"What can I do? Lisa? Just tell me" Arlene begged.

Cuddy rolled her eyes and breathed heavily. She was angry and everything her mother said was making it worse.

"Who was the surgeon?" House asked suddenly.

"What?" Arlene asked, looking back at House.

"The surgeon, the one who delivered the baby." House continued. "Who was it?"

"I—"

"Do you remember?" House asked. "Or is that bit of information not important enough to remember? Like your first grandchild was?"

"Of course I remember!" Arlene snapped. "You don't think I don't remember everything about that day?"

"Write it down," Cuddy said quietly.

"What?" Arlene asked.

Cuddy looked at her mother. Her hands clenched into tight fists as she spoke softly. "Everything you know, write it down. I want all the information you have on what happened to my daughter."

Arlene nodded. She looked around Cuddy's desk for something to write on. She grabbed a paper and a pen and wrote some things down. When she was done, she held the paper out to Cuddy.

From behind her, House limped over to stand beside her. He reached out and snatched the paper out of her hand. Arlene turned and glared at him as he put it in his pocket.

"Now get out," Cuddy told her mother.

"Lisa—" Arlene began.

"No," Cuddy sighed, shaking her head. "We're done. I'm done." She paused and swallowed. "Now I want you to leave. I want you out of my hospital and out of my life"

"I'm still your mother—"

"Yes," Cuddy nodded, her hands still clenched tight. "But I will never, ever forgive you for this."

Arlene looked at her daughter for a long moment, trying to work out how serious she was. Then she sighed defeated and walked out.

After she left, Cuddy let out a long, shaking sigh. House turned back to her. She was pale, her body rigid and stiff with tension. Then he looked down at her hands which were still clenched into fists. Her knuckles white.

"Relax" He sighed, but there was no bite in his words. Just concern.

Cuddy met his eyes and after a moment, she relaxed her hands. She winced ever so slightly but House being House picked up on it. He made his way around her desk until he was standing in front of her.

"Let me see." He said softly as he reached out and took both her wrists in his hands.

He turned her palms upwards and inspected her hands. She had clenched her hands so tightly that there were deep red indents in her hands where her fingernails had been. She hadn't broken the skin but if her mother had stayed any longer, she probably would have.

"You'll be fine," House told her as he gently let go of her wrists.

"Thanks," Cuddy nodded. "If you weren't here… I don't know what I would have done to her."

House let out a short amused breath, "I thought it was you who was stopping me from doing anything?"

Cuddy smiled briefly before sitting back down in her chair. House turned and leaned against the edge of her desk.

"What does the paper say?" She asked after a short pause between them.

House reached into his pocket and pulled out the paper that Arlene had written on. He read it over. It had The name of the surgeon and a phone number.

"Dr David Handler," He replied. "And I'm guessing the surgery's contact number."

Cuddy nodded in thought, "Yeah, Handler rings a bell. What are you going to do?"

House shrugged and placed the paper back in his pocket.

"Thought I'd look into a private eye or something. If I can't get anywhere with this Handler guy myself."

"Will you let me know? If you find anything?"

"You know I will."

Cuddy smiled softly at him. She knew she was very lucky that he didn't hate her and still wanted to talk to her. To include her in all this.

House pushed himself to stand straight and made his way towards her office door. When he was a few feet away he remembered something and turned back to her. Standing in the middle of her office, with both hands on top of his cane.

"I, ah, I told Wilson." He admitted sheepishly.

"Oh," Cuddy sighed and looked down. "What did he say?"

"Wow."

"No seriously?"

"Seriously. He just kept saying wow." House smirked. "I think I broke him."

Cuddy looked back up at him and couldn't help but smile slightly.

"He'll probably come here and hug you later or something," House added. "Once he's recovered from his shock"

"I'll be on the lookout then," Cuddy smiled.

House nodded then turned and left.

**House MD**

Max had been in the clinic, talking to a few of the nurses when she saw an older lady exit Cuddy's office. The lady looked upset. When Max had asked the nurses if any of them knew who she was, they had all said no.

Max decided to go to Cuddy's office and see what was happening. By the time she got there, House was walking out. Max waited a moment until she was sure he had gone before she walked in.

"Hey?" Max said when she was in the room. "Um, everything ok?"

"Oh, Yes, Max" Cuddy sighed.

"Are you sure?" Max asked. "You look…upset…"

"I'm fine," Cuddy said with a nod. "Just…A lot on my plate. That's all."

"Well, do you wanna go get a coffee and talk about it?" Max asked, offering Cuddy a genuine smile. "I've been told I'm a really good listener. And I give awesome advice."

Cuddy smiled for a moment before shaking her head. "Thanks, Max. But, um, it's kind of personal." 

"Yeah," Max shrugged. "Kay, well…I'd better get back to work…"

As she turned to leave Cuddy called out and stopped her.

"Hey, Max, um, a coffee actually does sound great. So does a talk, but not about me. Could we talk about anything else? I think I could use the distraction"

Max grinned, "Distraction I can do."

Cuddy stood from her desk and made her way to Max and the door. Cuddy needed to relax a bit before she went insane with her thoughts, and Max had a way of relaxing her.

 **To Be Continued….**


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note** _: I wrote this chapter during the commercials as I watched David Shore's new show – The Good Doctor. For anyone who hasn't seen it, I highly recommend you do. It is great television._

 _Also thanks for all the reviews and for those who are now following. I will try to update as often as I can, but sometimes life does make it difficult._ ****

 **Chapter Thirteen**

"So," Max began as she and Cuddy sat down at a table in the cafeteria. "Distraction…Distraction… Um…How's that local sports team?"

Cuddy raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Sports team? I thought you said you were awesome at distractions?"

"No, I said I was awesome at giving advice" Max shrugged.

"So not so much with the distractions then?"

"I wouldn't say that," Max said with a knowing grin. "Were you thinking about anything else? Other than my apparent lack of distraction skills?"

Cuddy thought for a moment and then realized that Max was right. She hadn't thought about what was going on with her mother, or with House. It was brief but it felt so nice.

"Ok," Cuddy nodded with a smile. "So, maybe you are good at distractions"

"I know," Max grinned. "It's just one of my many, many talents."

Cuddy laughed. It was weird, but she felt relaxed with Max. Enough to let her guard completely down and enjoy herself even though she should be extremely stressed by everything that was going on.

They spent several minutes talking until finally, Cuddy realized that as much as she wanted too, she couldn't spend all day talking with Max. She still had work to do.

"We better get back," Cuddy began. "I really should finish that budget report-"

"-Oh, I did that," Max replied quickly.

Cuddy was taken aback, "You finished the budget report?"

"Ah huh," Max nodded. "I was going to get you to go over it but coffee seemed better"

"That's – that's not really part of your job," Cuddy began.

"I know. I'm sorry," Max said with a shrug. "I should have asked. It's just that you seemed busy and stressed. Guess I just wanted to help. Why don't you just read it over," She suggested. "If it's bad I promise I won't try to do any more reports"

Cuddy looked at Max for a moment. Then her expression softened.

"Ok," Cuddy sighed. "Show me the report"

Max grinned.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Back in Cuddy's office, she was sitting at her desk reading of the budget report that Max had written up. She had to admit that Max did a really good job. The report was almost perfect. It wasn't exactly what Cuddy herself would have done… instead, it was a little bit better.

Clearly, Max was a smart girl. Smarter than any of her other assistances had ever been. Usually, they stuck to the usual, making and receive phone calls, taking notes, occasionally doing a coffee run, but never had any of them attempted to do any of Cuddy's own work. Especially not without being asked. Cuddy couldn't quite understand why Max would be working here as an assistant when she could be doing whatever she wanted.

Cuddy was brought out of her thoughts by someone coming into her office.

"Hi," said Wilson from the doorway. "Is this a good time?"

Cuddy nodded and placed the report down. She nodded and found herself a little bit nervous because she knew that Wilson knew about the baby.

Wilson walked closer and then sat down in the chair on the other side of Cuddy's desk.

"So, ah, House spoke to me…" Wilson began. Also as nervous as she was.

"…I know," Cuddy told him softly. 'He told me that he'd told you… About the baby…"

"Ok," Wilson sighed. "I wasn't sure if he was meant to tell me or not"

"Well, I don't really think I have the right to tell him who he can and can't talk to about this."

"So…you're alright? With him telling me?"

"I guess," Cuddy sighed and leaned back in her chair. "It's not really my place. And it will be good for him to have you to talk to through…this…"

"You can talk to me too," Wilson stated. "If you need an ear. I mean, this is big."

"Yeah," Cuddy nodded.

"So, if you ever wanna talk, or you know, you need me to say something to House…"

Cuddy chuckled slightly, "So you'd be our go-between? Is that what you're saying?"

Wilson shrugged, "Kind of. I know that sometimes you and House can get…Um, that you can let things get…Complicated"

"Complicated? I think that's an understatement." Cuddy sighed a little. "But, I think I get what you're saying. Thank you, Wilson."

Wilson smiled softly for a moment before he continued. "So…House wants to find her. Your daughter."

"Yeah," Cuddy nodded. She looked down for a moment. "I didn't think he would. I…I didn't really know what he'd want."

"Honestly I'm a bit surprised at that as well," Wilson said with a nod. Then he thought for a moment. "But, he's House, so I don't think he will stop until he does find her"

"I hope so."

 ** _**House MD**_**

House was back in his office, sitting at his desk. He was twirling the piece of paper that Arlene had written on in between his thumbs and index fingers. He stopped moving this paper and picked up his cell, which had been on the desk beside him.

He had wanted to make the call before, but he needed to calm himself and his thoughts after the run in with Arlene in Cuddy's office. That and he also needed to make sure that his team wouldn't interrupt him.

He dialed the number and after two rings, someone picked up.

"Good afternoon, Saint Joseph's Hospital. Jen speaking. How can I help you?"

"Jen, can you put me through to Dr. Handler," House said into the phone, but it wasn't really a question, more of a statement.

"We have a Dr. Jessica Hartle. Is that who you mean?" She asked.

"No. No, I'm looking for Dr. David Handler." House replied rolling his eyes slightly. "Probably an older member of staff"

There was a pause before Jen spoke again. "I'm sorry sir," She began. "There was a Dr. David Handler, but he's been dead for fifteen years."

"What?" House asked, more shocked than actually not understanding the question.

He hadn't thought that this could happen.

"Is there anyone else on staff that you'd like to talk to?" Jen asked.

House let out a deep, frustrated sigh and rubbed a hand over his face roughly.

"Don't suppose you know if he ever left any files? Specifically on adopting babies?"

"I'm sorry sir?"

"Did he ever handle adoptions?"

"No," Jen replied. "No that wasn't his area. All the adoptions would go through the adoption agencies. I can give you a list of the agencies around here, but I don't think you can just call and ask for information."

"Yeah," House rolled his eyes. "Thanks"

Then he hung up without letting Jen say another word.

He didn't really know what to do now. That Dr. Handler was their one connection to their daughter. If they couldn't talk to him, then how were they meant to find out what happened to her? He still had the idea of hiring a private detective. But where would they start looking? Without Dr. Handler, they really didn't have a starting point.

House sat back in his chair before reaching out and rubbing his thigh. His leg started hurting a bit worse than usual. Most likely due to stress. He quickly pulled out two Vicodin pills and dry swallowed them both together. Then he sat up and turned on his computer. He found the yellow pages web page and then typed in 'private investigator'.

 **To Be Continued…**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

"Could be an allergic reaction?" said Cameron

"Or it's drugs" House sighed.

"He doesn't take drugs," Cameron said firmly.

House was in his office, standing in front of his whiteboard. They were working on a case and they, Cameron in particular, was not seeing it his way. Which was pointless because it usually ended up his way…eventually.

It had been a few days since he had hired a private detective to search for his and Cuddy's daughter. Now he just needed to wait to hear back from the private eye. For now, he was busying himself with this new case.

"He says he doesn't take drugs," Foreman told Cameron.

"Why would he lie?" Cameron asked.

House looked at her with an expression of 'Duh'. "Because everybody lies" He replied while pulling a face.

"The drug screens came back negative though," Cameron argued.

Just then, Max walked into the room. She was carrying several manila folders in her arms.

"Recent budget report for your department," Max announced. She walked past the others and placed one of the folders down on House's desk.

"Don't they usually just get emailed?" Chase asked as Max turned back around.

Max nodded, "Yeah, but how often do you think he reads the email?" She asked as she gestured a hand in House's direction.

"He just get's one of us to do it" Foreman replied with a half shrug of his shoulders.

"Well, guess who just volunteered to read the report later?" House scoffed. He had been standing in front of the whiteboard, his back to the others and up until this point he had ignored Max's presence in the room. "Can we get back to the ca—"

He was interrupted by his phone ringing in his pocket. He pulled it out and checked the number. It was the private detective he had hired.

"Gotta take this," He announced. "When I get back I want some sort of an answer."

Then, before anyone could say anything, House hobbled out of the office and onto his balcony. He turned and made sure to close the door. He did not want the other's to hear this conversation.

 ** _**House MD**_**

"Yeah?" House asked as soon as the phone was against his ear.

"Dr House?" Came a male voice. "Sorry I didn't call you earlier. Is this a good time?"

 _'Not really'_ House thought, but said "Yeah," once again.

"Ok, so I managed to get my hands on some old records from Saint Joseph's," The investigator explained. "And I specifically went through everything from September 1986, but there wasn't any mention of any adoption being made"

House let out a short, frustrated sigh.

"What about any birth certificates?" He asked, "There's gotta be one baby's whose details on their birth certificate don't match up with their parents."

"I'll keep looking, of course." The other man replied. "But if it was a dodgy adoption like you say, then I'm guessing any birth certificate would be forged with the wrong details."

House nodded, even though the other man couldn't see him.

"Anyway," The man began. "I'll keep digging and I'll see what I can find. I'll call you back when if I do find anything."

The man hung up. House placed his cell back into his pocket.

This was turning out to be harder than he thought. It was like locating a needle in a haystack. Clearly, Arlene and Handler had covered their tracks and knew what to do and what not to do in order to keep the baby's existence and the adoption a secret.

 _'Crap!'_ He thought angrily.

Now he was in a bad mood.

 ** _**House MD**_**

When House walked back into his office, he found Cameron and Max arguing about the patient. He inwardly groaned as he was in no mood for any of this right now.

"-You're not a doctor," Cameron stated, clearly irritated. "How would you even know?"

"I'm not a famous pianist either." Max shot back. "Doesn't mean I can't play Moonlight Sontana by Beethoven perfectly when I'm at a piano" She folded her arms across her chest.

"Why are you arguing?" House demanded crossly, looking from Cameron and to Max. "And why are you still here?" He asked Max.

"Max was just agreeing that the patient lied about the drugs," Chase explained.

"And she knows this how?" House asked.

"Um, because he clearly has all the symptoms of someone having withdrawal," Max said, waving a hand towards the whiteboard which was covered in information.

House looked over at the whiteboard and then back at Max and Cameron.

"Drug tests came back negative," House told them.

"See!" Cameron half yelled triumphantly. "That's what I said. He doesn't take drugs."

"Or," Max began. "Maybe he did do drugs, but by the time you ran the tests the drugs were out of his system."

"That would explain his symptoms," said Chase thoughtfully.

"But he swore he's never taken drugs." Said Cameron.

Max shrugged and shook her head, "People lie you know."

Cameron turned and narrowed her eyes at Max. "I forgot," She began. "What medical did you say you go to?"

"I didn't" Max replied, holding Cameron's gaze. "And I don't."

Max turned on her heel and walked out of the office, leaving the others stunned.

"What's your problem with Max?" Chase asked.

"Doesn't it bother any of you that she always has an opinion on our patients?" Cameron asked the others.  
"Not really," Foreman shrugged. "I don't really care"

"I think she's just interested in what we do." Added Chase. "And her theories haven't been too bad. Maybe she does know what she's talking about."

"But she's not a doctor," Argued Cameron. "She's an assistant. She's not even in pre-med."

"Alright!" House yelled. He'd had enough of the bickering. "Stop talking about Chase's crush-"

"-I don't have a crush!-" Chase hissed back.

"-And go and talk to the patient again about his drug use."

"But—" Cameron began to protest.

"Now!"

Then House grabbed his cane and walked out, leaving a very upset and angry Cameron behind as well as a slightly embarrassed Chase.

 ** _**House MD**_**

It was late in the afternoon when Cameron made her way into Cuddy's office. She looked around quickly, thankful that neither Max nor Cuddy where there before she walked into Cuddy's office.

As annoying as it was, she had been thinking about Max all day. There was just something about her that Cameron found unsettling.

Carefully, she made her way over to Cuddy's desk and started opening up the draws. She found a small stack of papers with Max's name on it. She was about to pull them out when a voice made her jump.

"What are you doing?" Foreman asked

Cameron jumped slightly but then shook her head and continued.

"I'm just trying to find Max's resume."

"Why? Did House ask you?"

"Well, no," Cameron said with a slight shake of her head.

"Then why are you going through Cuddy's desk?" Foreman asked as he walked towards the desk. "You're gonna get extra clinic duty or something"

"I'm sure I can handle it" Cameron replied with a shrug. "I just want to see what the deal with Max is."

"The deal?"

"Don't you think there's something…off, about her?"

"Ah," Forman thought and then shook his head. "Not really. I honestly don't care that much about Cuddy's assistant."

Cameron pulled out the pieces of paper and folded them. "Yeah, well, I think there is something she's not saying."

Cameron carefully tucked the folded papers under her arm before she made her way to the door.

Foreman rolled his eyes, but didn't say anything and followed her out of Cuddy's office. He really didn't think there was any big mystery about Max and was sure that Cameron's problem was a jealousy thing as Max was another smart, young woman. But he wouldn't say anything. Either Cameron's search would show nothing, or she'd find something in which case he could sit back and watch what happened.

 ** _**House MD**_**

That evening, Max was laying on her stomach on her bed. Her legs bent upwards and as she made new sketches in her book. She was busy humming a random tune as she drew, her mind deep in thought.

Her cell started to ring, bringing her out of her thoughts. She sighed and checked the number on the screen before answering it.

"Hey, what's up?..." She asked with a smile. Her smile faded when she heard what the person on the other end had to say. "...So who called?...Ah no, Dr Cameron is not my boss….Yes, I'm sure. Dr Cuddy is my boss….Well, Dr Cameron had no right to call…." She sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. "Well did you do what I asked? Did you pretend to be my old employers? Give me great reviews?...Ok, thanks…."

Max paused and thought for a moment. She was now extremely angry at Cameron for sticking her nose into her business. Thankfully she had planned ahead well before she came here and she knew well enough to cover her tracks and create a backstory for herself. She had just thought that it would be Cuddy who would go checking, not some random doctor.

She sat and ran a hand through her hair as she listened to the other person talk.

"No, I'm not just going to give up…" Max said with a deep frustrated sigh. "…I'm sure… Look, I can handle Dr Cameron…I just wanna keep getting to know them in my own time….Just," She paused before letting out a short, calming breath. "Trust me. Ok. I know what I'm doing."

 **To be continued…**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter Fifteen**

The next day, Max made her way to House's office with a purpose. She was still mad over what Cameron had done, and while she knew a part of her should just let it go, there was another part of her, a part that didn't like to listen to reason and logic. The part that was often controlled by her anger. The part that often got her into trouble. That part wanted to give Cameron a piece of her mind.

When she walked into House's office, only Chase, Cameron and Foreman were there. The three of them were sitting down at the large table, Chase was making notes while reading a medical novel of some sort. Forman was looking over a file and Cameron was sitting with a laptop on the desk in front of her.

"You rang my references?" Max demanded, suddenly standing on the other side of the table to Cameron, looking directly at her.

All three doctors turned and looked at her in shock. After a moment, Cameron found her composure. She calmly closed the lid of her laptop before standing up.

"Why, is that a problem?" Cameron asked, raising an eyebrow, curious to see Max's reaction. Though she didn't know how she found out. After she had made the phone calls, she had placed the resume back into Cuddy's desk.

"Maybe because it's none of your business," Max snapped back, folding her arms across her chest.

"They were on your resume," Cameron stated in a very annoyed tone. "It wasn't private information."

"First off, my resume is for my boss to look at. Which last time I checked, wasn't you. Not even close. Second, you could have asked me but noooo, you had to go and do it behind my back."

"Would you have given me those numbers if I'd asked?"

"Ah, no!" Max shot back.

"See!"

"Because, again, it's none of your business!"

"It is when you keep interfering with our cases!" Cameron half yelled back in response.

Meanwhile, Case and Foreman were sitting down, completely engrossed in the fight happening between them. Their heads moved back and forth from one woman to the other, almost as if they were watching a tennis match.

"I have never once 'interfered' with any of your cases" Max replied firmly. "I've given my opinion. What you or anyone chooses to do with that opinion is not my responsibility."

"She has a point-" Chase began but then stopped abruptly when Cameron glared at him.

"You're just Cuddy's assistant," Cameron continued, turning back to face Max. "You're not in medical school or even pre-med. Do you even go to college?"

"Wow," Max sighed and rolled her eyes. "You just won't drop it will you. You're like a really stubborn, annoying mutt with a bone. Just drop it!"

It was then that House came into the office. He had been able to hear the shouting from down the corridor. He didn't know much about Cuddy's assistant, but he also didn't know why Cameron cared so much.

"What's going on?" House asked. Then he shook his head. "Actually, I don't care."

He walked past all of them and headed to his desk.

"They're not hard questions." Cameron snapped angrily. "Why do you keep avoiding? Are you hiding something?"

"Avoiding out of annoyance, and avoiding to keep secrets are two very different things," Max said, her eyes narrowed at Cameron.

"Ladies, please" House sighed, as he sat in his chair. "You're both pretty. Can we end this now?"

Max looked at House for a moment and then turned back to Cameron. "Just back off." She warned. "And mind your own business."

With that, Max turned sharply on her heel and stormed out of the office. The three men in the office all turned to look at Cameron, who was silently fuming.

"What?" Cameron demanded and she sat down quickly in her chair. "She's can't keep acting all mysterious and then be shocked when someone starts asking questions."

"Is it really that important?" Foreman asked.

"I—" Cameron began.

"-No, it's not." House cut in. "Next time take your squabbling somewhere else." Then he paused before saying, "Unless you wanna turn your fights into full-on cat-fight. Then you—" He stopped himself. For some reason, he realised that the idea of Cameron and Max going at it wasn't the turn on it should be. "-Just go and do something useful."  
 ** _  
**House MD**  
_**  
Max walked into her office and sat down at her desk in a huff. She couldn't believe how annoying and stubborn that Dr Cameron could be. If she didn't leave things alone, she could end up ruining everything and exposing her secret. She wasn't ready for that to happen, not yet anyway.

Max opened a file on her desk and started flipping through the pages rather quickly in her angered state. She almost didn't see or hear Cuddy walk in from the clinic.

"Ah, Max?" Cuddy asked.

Max stopped what she was doing and looked up. Her expression softened a little.

"Are you ok?" Cuddy asked.

"Yeah," Max sighed.

"Really?" Cuddy asked, walking over to her. "Because I've just been told that there was an argument between you and Dr Cameron."

"Oh… That." Max said, looking down.

"You wanna tell me what happened?"

Max sighed then looked back up at Cuddy. "I found out that Cameron got hold of my resume and called my references. Without asking obviously."

"She did?" Cuddy asked, surprised. "But, that was in my office…"

"Exactly." Max nodded.

"I'm sorry. Dr Cameron had no right to do that" Cuddy replied. "And she had no right to argue with you either."

Max's face softened even more and she sighed. Shrugging one shoulder she said, "It probably wasn't all her fault." She bit her lower lip slightly before adding, "I may or may not have accidentally called her a ' _stubborn and annoying dog'_ "

Cuddy's mouth involuntarily twitched up into a smile before she caught herself. She should be mad or at least annoyed, but instead, she was amused and... slightly proud.

"You didn't?"

"Actually…I may have used the word _'mutt'_ " Max admitted.

"A mutt?"

"Yeah…sorry,"

"Well…" Cuddy thought for a moment. "…That wasn't the most appropriate way of dealing with it. Can you just promise me that you won't do anything like this again?"

"Absolutely" Max agreed, nodding vigorously.

"And if you have any issues with Cameron or any other member of staff that you will come to me first?"

"I promise. I just don't like people putting their noses into my business."

Cuddy nodded, "I'm sure Cameron was just curious. Working with House has probably blurred the lines of what is and what is not appropriate." She paused and then smiled softly. "Would you like me to have a talk with Dr Cameron?"

"No," Max sighed. "Cameron's fine."

"Sure?"

"She's fine."  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

Later in the afternoon, Cuddy made her way to House's office. She had told Max that she wouldn't push the issue further with Cameron, but she also just wanted to let House know what was going on. She wanted to keep Max as her assistant and so she wanted to make her life easier.

When she walked in, House was sitting at his desk, leaning back in his chair while throwing candy up in the air before catching it in his mouth.

"Ah hem," Cuddy cleared her throat.

House stopped and looked over at her. "Cuddy?"

"Did you hear about the fight between Cameron and Max?" She asked, making her way over to his desk.

"Hear it? I witnessed it." He replied. He placed his hand up and used his thumb and index finger to indicate a small space. "They were this close to pulling each other's hair."

"And you didn't think it would have been appropriate to stop them?"

"Their both adults," House replied with a shrug.

Cuddy sighed, "Well, Max is pretty upset by it all, so could you please tell Cameron to just leave her alone."

"Why?" House asked, raising an eyebrow slightly.

"Max is a good kid," Cuddy said with a shrug. "She doesn't deserve to feel like she's being bullied at work."

"Ok," House nodded.

"Thank you," Cuddy smiled warmly.

Things between her and House were still a little…rocky. Which is what she had to expect after all. Finding out you had a kid with someone and that that kid is still out there is a lot to deal with.

"Any, um, any news?" Cuddy asked after a moment.

House let out a deep sigh and shook his head.

"Not yet." He replied. "You sure there's not more your mom might know?"

"I-I don't know," Cuddy shrugged. "I don't know if I can ask her. I really don't want to talk to her. I meant it when I said I don't want her in my life anymore."

"You think you'll ever forgive her?" He asked cautiously.

"Will you?" Cuddy asked.

"No," House shook his head, "but, she's not my mother"

"No," Cuddy agreed with a sigh. "Right now though, I just want to focus on finding my daughter…our daughter."

House didn't say anything. Just nodded his head in agreement.

 **To be continued…**


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Notes –** _So, I know that House MD is a medical drama and so you would expect fanfiction about it to at least be sub-par with its medical info etc.….But I have realised that I suck at writing all the medical/medicine side of things. So in saying that, I wanted to let you know that from now on that side of things will be glossed over so that I can focus on other parts of the storyline. Also, I haven't seen an episode of House in years, so I am sorry if I get the layout of the hospital wrong._ **  
** _  
p.s. I'm not feeling the best (cold symptoms) so I'm sorry if this chapter is not as good as others have been._ ****

 **Chapter Sixteen**

Several days had passed since Cameron and Max's little confrontation. Max was still angry at Cameron, but she kept her promise to Cuddy and avoided Cameron as much as she could.

Avoiding Cameron wasn't easy, as Max wanted to find out more about House and how he worked. She wanted to go to his office and see for herself, but instead, she made do with reading anything she could about him, as well as asking other staff members about him. Though that one was proving to be pretty pointless as there were so many rumours going around, it didn't really help her get a sense of his character, except that he could be a real ass most of the time.

In the meantime though, Max had grown closer with Cuddy. She found that she was really easy to get along with, even though she had a reputation of being a 'hard bitch' sometimes. Max was finding that she, herself, was relaxing more and more with Cuddy. Which, could prove to be damaging to her reason for being there, or it could end up being a good thing. Mas wasn't sure which at this point.

It was just after 12:15 pm and Cuddy and Max were sitting in the cafeteria, each with a plate of food in front of them.

Having coffee or a meal together in the hospital's cafeteria was becoming a regular occurrence for Max and Cuddy. Something that the other staff found odd since Cuddy never usually socialized with her assistance before.

"What do you do when you're not here?" Cuddy asked casually as they ate. She was really interested in knowing more about Max. Not so much for curiosities sake, but because she generally wanted to know about Max.

Max shrugged, "Bit of everything I suppose." She paused and ate some of the chips off her plate. "I like drawing. Playing music sometimes. Stuff like that." She grinned and added, "I'll try anything at least once."

"Oh, are you any good at drawing?" Cuddy asked, before taking a bite of her own salad.

"Well, I think I'm awesome."

Cuddy laughed and smiled broadly at Max, who was smiling a cocky smile back.

It was at that time that House turned up at their table. Cuddy stopped laughing and tried to stop smiling. She only managed to make her smile smaller.

"House?" She asked, looking over at him.

"My patient is stupid" House announced.

Cuddy frowned and looked up at him, "Why?" She asked. Then she sighed, "What did you do?"

"Now why do you think I did anything?" He asked, in a mocked hurt tone.

Max choked out a short laugh, before clamping her mouth shut tightly. Her eyes sparkling with amusement.

House turned to her with one brow raised.

"Something funny?" House asked, looking Max over.

"Hey, I have access to lots of files," Max explained with a shrug. "And there are a lot of complaints made about you." She grinned and gave a half shrug. "So, yeah, I find it funny that you even _try_ to act all innocent."

"Well, I am this time." House protested, banging his cane down on the floor.

Max leaned to the side and looked at his cane, then she sat back up and reached out to Cuddy's plate. She plucked one of the cherry tomatoes from Cuddy's salad and plopped it into her mouth happily.

House was about to open his mouth to comment on Max's actions when Cuddy interrupted his thoughts.

"Why is you patient stupid?" Cuddy asked.

She either didn't notice Max steal or food, or she didn't care.

"He's refusing treatment," House answered with disdain. "Because he's a hippy and he thinks _'god'_ will cure him."

Cuddy had to fight the urge not to roll her eyes. She knew that House and religious people did not get along and would not be surprised if she found another serious complaint against him by the end of the day.

"What happened? Did you explain the risks if he doesn't get treated?" Cuddy asked.

"No!" House exclaimed sarcastically. "I never thought of that."

This time Cuddy did roll her eyes.

"Where is he now?" She asked, pushing her chair out to stand up.

"Where I left him," House replied.

Max noticed House's eyes wandered to Cuddy's backside briefly before returning to her face.

"Ok," Cuddy sighed. "Let's go. Excuse us, Max."

Max nodded and then watched Cuddy and House walk off together. She continued to watch them for several moments, a thousand different thoughts running through her mind. Then she shook her head in an attempt to clear her thoughts.

 _'I wanna see this'_ She thought as she stood up and cleared the table. Then she took off in the same direction that House and Cuddy had gone.

 ** _**House MD**_**

When Max arrived in the patient's room, she saw that House and the patient were having a pretty intense argument with Cuddy trying to mediate the two.

"You just want to promote drug dependency," The patient said stubbornly. "I want to rely on alternative medicines, as God intended."

"Um, I'm sorry," Max sighed, as she stepped into the room.

House and Cuddy turned to look at her.

"Max?" Cuddy asked

"I don't mean to interrupt," Max continued. She walked towards the patient's bed. "It's just that, by definition," She began. "alternative medicine, has either not been proved to work, or been proved not to work."

"Who are you?" The patient asked.

"Do you know what they call _alternative medicine_ that's been proved to work?" Max asked, ignoring the patient's question. _'Medicine_.'"

"So you agree with them?" The patient asked as he waved a hand towards House and Cuddy. "You believe science is the answer?"

"I think when it comes to health, yes." Max nodded. She thought for a moment before adding, "Have you thought that maybe 'science' is the path that 'god' wants you to take?"

The patient, House and Cuddy all stared at Max.

 ** _**House MD**_**

About an hour later, House and walked into Cuddy's office. The patient had finally agreed to have the treatment. Thanks in large part to Max's argument.

"Patient's going to live," House announced, looking down at Max, who was sitting at her desk. "Surprisingly, thanks to you."

Max looked up and smiled, "Sometimes you can't reason with people. Calling their belief's stupid isn't always the best way to change their mind."

"You don't know that I called his belief stupid," House told her.

"Bet you did," Max replied in a sing-song voice.

"Well now he still thinks that there is a god," House said after a moment.

"Who says there's not?" Max asked, raising a brow quizzically.

"You're kidding?" House rolled his eyes. "You believe in god?"

"I didn't say that," Max replied.

"You just—"

"-I believe that I am not smart enough to know the all the answers." Max continued. "So, whether there is or isn't a god is really not for me to say."

"How can you not believe in a god but then also not believe there isn't one?" House demanded. "You have to choose one."

"No I don't," Max scoffed. She leaned back in her chair and folded her arms over her chest. "The way I see it, neither side has proof that they are right. So until I get proof, I don't need to make a decision."

"I can show you a ward full of terminally ill people that might change your mind."

Max shook her head, "That doesn't prove that 'god' doesn't exist. If anything it proves that he's an ass."

"So what do you believe then?" House asked pointedly.

"I have more of a realist reality," Max replied. Then she grinned broadly. "Which I can manipulate to suit my worldview."

"Seriously?" House asked.

Max smiled sweetly and added, "Works for me."

House couldn't help but smirk down at Max. He may not agree with her argument, but at least she was making in based on facts and not feelings. Which was rare these days.

House was about to say something when his cell began to ring. He pulled it out of his pocket and saw that it was the investigator calling again. Without saying a word, he turned and walked into Cuddy's office.

 ** _**House MD**_**

"House?" Cuddy asked when she saw him walk in.

He placed a hand up to signal her to be quiet and then answered his phone.

"Yeah?" He asked quickly. No need for pleasantries. He wasn't friends with this person. He just needed his information. "Any news?"

"Ah, just wanted to let you know that I may have a lead on your daughter."

"Ok," House nodded, his hand still held up.

Cuddy frowned in confusion.

"Nothing concrete yet," The investigator continued. "But I just wanted to let you know. Give me a few days to check it out. 'Kay."

"Yeah," House sighed and then hung up.

"Who was that?" Cuddy asked, after a pause.

House made his way over to her and sat down in the chair opposite her. "Private investigator."

"Oh," Cuddy sighed, "The one you hired to—"

"—To find out daughter." House nodded. "Yep."

"Any news?" Cuddy asked, she tried to keep the excitement out of her voice but she knew that she mostly failed.

House shook his head. "Not yet."

Cuddy looked down, and expression of sadness and disappointment spreading over her face.

"Hey," House said softly, making Cuddy turn back to look at him. "We will find her."

Cuddy smiled slightly and nodded. She had to trust that House was right about this.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Later that night, Chase walked out of the hospital, ready to go home after a long day. He was surprised to see Max standing out the front at the main bus stop.

"Hey!" He called out before walking towards her. "What are you doing?"

"Waiting for the bus," Max replied. "Obviously."

"I meant… what happened to your car?" He asked.

"Oh," Max shrugged. "I had to get rid of it. For a good cause."

"Well, do you want a lift anywhere?" He asked.

Max thought for a moment and then nodded. "That'd be great actually," she smiled.

Chase led her towards the carpark and to his car.

 ** _**House MD**_**

The next day, Wilson walked into Cuddy's office. He wanted to touch base over everything that was happening. He knew from House that they hadn't yet gotten any solid information about where their daughter could be, so he wanted to make sure she was ok.

As he walked in he was suddenly hit by something. Startled, he turned and saw Max, sitting at her desk with a pile of rubber bands. She picked up another one and flicked it across the room.

"Are you flicking rubber bands?" Wilson asked her.

"No" Max replied slowly before grinning. "Little buggers are just leaping out of my hands."

Wilson went to say something but was interrupted when the phone on Max's desk rang. Max sat up and quickly answered the phone.

Wilson shook his head and then remembered that he had wanted to see Cuddy. He continued into her office and forgot about Max.

 ** _**House MD**_**

In House's office, Chase and Foreman were sitting at the big desk. Cameron was off in the clinic and House was doing whatever it was that House did when he wasn't around them. Which was probably annoy Wilson or Cuddy, or just hide from them.

"What do you think of Max?" Chased asked suddenly.

Foreman thought for a moment and then shrugged. "I don't know" He replied. "I know she rubs Cameron in the wrong way."

"Yeah," Chase nodded. "Other than that, I mean."

"Why?"

"I don't know," Chase shrugged. "I was thinking of asking her out."

"Thinking of asking who out?" House demanded as he suddenly entered the room.

"Um,"

"He wants to ask Cuddy's assistant out," Foreman replied offhandedly as he went back to what he was doing.

House frowned for a moment before rolling his eyes. "Like she'd go out with you?"

"Why wouldn't she?" Chase demanded, folding his arms over his chest.

"Because she's way too smart for that," House replied.

"Ah, why do you care?" Foreman asked House.

"I don't," House replied shortly. Then he turned to Chase and added, "Go ask her out then."

"Kay. I will." Chase announced before he stood up and walked out the door. 

"She'll say no" House told Foreman.

Foreman looked at House for a moment before frowning, "Seriously, why do you care? You don't know Max." 

"I know she deserves better." 

With that, House limped out of the office once again.

Foreman was right, why did he care? He usually couldn't give two tosses about any of his staff and their love lives. Sure he gave them a hard time about it, but really he was just messing with them. He really couldn't care less, and he never cared about any other staff member of the hospital, with the exception of Cuddy and Wilson. So why now did he suddenly have an opinion on Cuddy's new assistant and whether or not she dated Chase.

Max was….interesting. She wasn't annoying and stupid like most of the other people that worked in the hospital. He could actually stand her. But that still didn't explain why the thought of her dating Chase made him feel uneasy. It wasn't that he 'liked' her. At least not in that way. No, it was something else.

He just didn't know what that was.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Chase was heading towards Cuddy's office when he saw Max at the nurse's station at the clinic. He watched as she placed a file on the desk before leaning over and grabbing a lollipop out of the jar.

"Hey," He called out as he made his way over to her.

Max smiled as she took the plastic wrapper of her lolly, before putting it in her mouth.

"Hi." She nodded. "Thanks again for the ride last night."

"It was no problem. I'm always happy to help, you know if you decide you don't want to take the bus."

Max laughed and then started walking towards her office. Chase followed quickly behind her.

"I still can't believe you're staying in a hotel."

There was a short pause as Chase opened and held the office door open for her. Max walked past, flicking her hair over her shoulder.

"I still haven't decided how long I'll be sticking around for yet." She replied honestly. She turned to him and smiled, waving her lollipop in her hand. "I've got some things to figure out before I decide."

"Right," Chase nodded slowly, trying to make it seem like he understood but he really didn't.

"So…." Max began, briefly sucking on her lollipop. "Did you want something?" She asked. "Dr Cuddy's in a meeting…"

"…Oh, um, No." Chase said quickly, suddenly a little nervous. "I mean, I did want something, but it's not to see Cuddy."

"Is it to see me?" Max grinned.

"Well, I was just wondering, if um," Chase began to stutter. He wasn't usually this awkward with women. "You know if you wanted to grab a drink…or something…sometime.."

"Oh…" Max said slowly, taking the lollipop out of her mouth. "Like a date?" She asked, raising one eyebrow.

"Um, yeah." Chase nodded.

"Oh," Max sighed and nodded as well. "Um, look, Chase." She began softly and gently. "You seem really nice, and you're cute. Like, really cute. It's just that, I have a lot going on right now. Personal stuff and I'm just…" She sighed and shook her head before continuing, "I'm not in the right mindset to go out on a date with anyone. Okay?"

Chase stood still for a moment. Letting Max's words sink in. He was deflated and disappointed but he quickly pulled himself together and smiled shortly.

"Yeah, I get it. Don't worry about it."

"You sure?" Max asked. She didn't want to hurt him. He really was a nice guy. And she had been around some jerks in her time, so it was nice to meet a nice guy for a change.

"Yeah," Chase breathed. "Ah, anyway, I better get back. I'm sure House has something for me to do."

Max nodded then watched as Chase quickly left the office.

After he was gone she let out a deep sigh and rolled her head to look at the ceiling for a moment before she whispered, _"Crap."_

 **To Be Continued…**


	17. Chapter 17

**Author's Notes:** _Please don't read too much into the medical stuff. It's probably all wrong.  
_

 **Chapter Seventeen**

House was sitting in coma guy's room, watching TV with his legs propped up on the side of the hospital bed. His cane laying across his lap.

He heard footsteps as someone came into the room but he didn't turn to acknowledge them.

"Figured I'd find you in here," Came Wilson's voice.

"Can't talk," House dramatically whispered. "Busy" He added, pointing to the TV.

Wilson rolled his eyes and shook his head. He then moved to stand in front of the TV, blocking House's view.

"Aren't you meant to be in the clinic?" Wilson asked.

House frowned and reached his cane out, trying to hit Wilson with it, but Wilson managed to dodge it easily.

"Aren't you meant to mind your own business?" House demanded. "Since when do you care about my clinic hours?"

"It's pretty busy down there today." Wilson continued. "You could actually help. I know it would help Cuddy out. She has had a lot on her plate at the moment."

"Oh," House's eyes went wide in fake surprise. "You're talking about her waiting to hear news on about our love child."

"House –" Wilson sighed, placing a hand on his hip.

"—Mine and Cuddy's love child," House added quickly. "Not yours and mine. Although, that would make for a nice new juicy rumour…"

"House, can you be serious? Yes because of that. Can't you just, I don't know… Go easy on her or something? Or are you still angry at her?"

"I'm not angry at her-" House began, rolling his eyes in annoyance.

"Then why are you being an ass?" Wilson demanded.

"I'm not being an ass," House protested. "I'm being normal."

"What's the difference?"

" _Normal,"_ House continued. "Keeps people's minds on what's happening around them and not what could be happening."

House stood and walked past Wilson, briefly stopping to turn the TV off on his way.

"Oh," Wilson said.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Wilson had caught up with House and now the two of them were in an elevator on their way down to the clinic.

"You really aren't angry at her anymore," Wilson said. It was a statement, not a question.

House shook his head just as the elevator doors opened.

"Being angry or not doesn't change anything," House said, avoiding eye contact with Wilson. "May as well just move on."

House walked out not bothering to wait for Wilson.

Wilson couldn't help but smile. He knew House was no longer angry at Cuddy. If anything he could see his two friends growing closer over this. He hoped that they found their daughter soon.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House made his way to the nurse's station of the clinic where Cuddy was standing, She had several files in her arms.

"Sending Wilson to do your dirty work now?" He asked, coming to stand beside her. "That's low. How would you like it if I did the same to you? But, you know, with Max instead of Wilson."

Cuddy looked up at him startled. She was flustered and it took her mind a second to process what her ears had just heard.

"House, what?—" She shook her head, "I don't want to know. I have a case for you."

She turned and placed the stack of files onto the desk and looked through them. She found the one she was looking for and then handed it to House.

House opened his mouth but was interrupted by someone across the room calling out Cuddy's name.

"Sorry, I have to go," Cuddy told him quickly. "Just page me if you need me ok. I think I'm going to be busy here for a while."

House watched as Cuddy walked away rather quickly, then he looked down at the file in his hand. He opened it up and read it over quickly. Then he noticed a yellow post-it note on the bottom of the first page. Scribbled in handwriting he didn't recognise was a message:

 _'Here are some possible diagnoses: Macular Degeneration  
idiopathic Choroidal Neovascularization  
or Ocular Histoplasmosis  
Have fun ;)'_

He looked back up and searched for Cuddy but she had already disappeared. It wasn't Cuddy's writing on the note, and she never gave suggestions on his patient until after he had taken his time to run tests.

He decided to continue thinking while he headed to his office.  
 ** _  
**House MD**  
_**  
House had announced to his team that they had a new case, and surprisingly, after several minutes of discussing the symptoms they too came up with the same theories as the post-it note. Which is what House himself had come up with. So whoever wrote the note, had some knowledge on this stuff.

House had sent his team out to run tests to confirm their diagnostics. Meanwhile, he sat at his desk, the post-it note in one hand and his cane in the other.

"Hey," Wilson called as he entered House's office.

"I have a case," House said, not looking in Wilson's direction. "So I can't be in the clinic right now."

"I wasn't going to say anything about the clinic," Wilson replied.

"Is it still busy down there?"

Wilson shook his head, "No. The masses have cleared out. So, how's the patient?"

"Teams running tests."

"Well, that would explain why they are not here," Wilson said with a short nod. "So what are you doing? What's that?" He asked, pointing to the note in House's hands.

"Was with the patient's file," House said as he waved it in front of Wilson. "It's some suggestions on what could be wrong."

"Is it from Cuddy? I didn't think she had the time this morning."

"Not her hand-writing," House said, shaking his head.

"Oh," Wilson said before pausing and thinking for a moment. "Could be a nurse?" He suggested.

"Not likely," House replied. "They've never done it before."

Wilson thought for another moment for thinking out loud, "Could be Max."

"Max?"

"Yeah," Wilson nodded. "She's Cuddy's assistant so nearly all the files that Cuddy gets, or sends out go through Max at one point or another. She could have looked at the file this morning and written the note."

"How would Cuddy's assistant know anything about diagnosing a patient?" House asked, more to himself than to Wilson.

"I don't know," Wilson said with a shrug. "Max seems pretty interested in medicine. I think I've seen a medical journal on her desk before. And she's had opinions about your cases before, hasn't she? Isn't that part of the reason why she and Cameron had that fight?"

House looked over at Wilson with a quizzical look.

"You think she might be a pre-med dropout or something?" He asked.

"Honestly I have no clue," Wilson admitted. "Max is pretty closed lipped about herself and her past. I've given up asking her questions."

House nodded, deep in thought.

Maybe it was time he looked into Cuddy's assistant. To find out what her story was.

 **To Be Continued…**


	18. Chapter 18

**Author's Note:** _I am not from America. So I do not really know how the schooling system works. I have tried to do some research but if I have gotten anything wrong then sorry._ __ ****

 **Chapter Eighteen**

It was late in the evening as House made his way into Cuddy's outer office in order to see Max. Since that day's case had ended up being pretty basic and easy, he had spent the rest of the day trying to find out what he could about Cuddy's new assistant.

He walked in and saw that Cuddy's office lights were off, meaning that she was either out in another part of the hospital or she had gone home already. It didn't matter either way. House didn't care if she was here or not. It didn't make a difference.

Max was still there. She was leaning back in her chair, her legs crossed in front of her with her heels resting on the desk. She had a book in one hand while the other held a pen to her mouth as she chewed on the tip lightly.

House watched her for a moment. She was so deep in thought that she either hadn't noticed him, or she didn't care.

He was intrigued by her. Not something a lot of people provoked in him.

"You're smart" House stated.

Without a beat or even looking up Max replied, "You have a cane."

House smirked and walked closer. Max continued to read her book, ignoring House. She turned the page of her book and then finally turned to look at him.

"I think it's your turn." She said, waving her pen in his direction. "To say something painfully obvious. Then I'll have another go."

"I know you wrote the note with suggestions on what my patient could have," House told her. "Question is why?"

Max shrugged. She finally closed her book and removed her legs from her desk. She sat up straight in her chair and placed the book down on the desk.

"Why not?" She asked. "I mean, I read the file. I had ideas. I put them on paper. Figured it was easier than talking to you…or, you know, having Dr Cameron get all huffy again."

House suppressed a smirk.

"The fact that you knew what you were reading and could come up with a diagnosis makes you smart."

"I know," Max nodded slowly and mockingly.

"So, you understand all this stuff," House stated. "You read medical journals in your spare time. You go out of your way to check out what I'm doing and you always seem to have an opinion on it—"

"—Guess I'm just fascinated by what you do." Max interrupted him, with fake sweetness in her voice.

"You study medicine. You know about medicine. You're smart. Smarter than most doctors around here."

"Wow," Max sighed. "That's such a ringing endorsement for this hospital—"

"—And yet," House continued seriously. "I can't find a single bit of information about you. No high school record. No college… Why would that be?"

"Hmm, well…" Max began, pausing to think. "It could be because my last name isn't actually Taylor."

House carefully looked her over, trying to work out if she was serious or not.

"Or," Max continued in the same tone. "It could be because, after the little stunt that Dr Cameron pulled, I decided that I didn't want anyone digging into my life so I covered my tracks."

House continued to look at her thoughtfully. If he was honest, he really didn't know which explanation was the truth. The girl would be excellent at playing poker.

"Why do you care if people know about your past?" House asked after a moment.

"Would you like it if I looked into your past?" She asked.

"I've got nothing to hide." He stated. "Go ahead."

Max smirked slightly, "Who says I haven't?"

House smirked back.

"If you know about me, shouldn't I at least get to know a bit about you?"

"Quid pro quo?"

House nodded and took another step towards her. He was now standing right in front of her desk, causing Max to have to tilt her head up slightly to keep eye contact. Usually, this would intimidate most people. Never worked on Cuddy or Wilson, and it looked like it wasn't going to work on Max either.

"Okay," Max nodded in agreement. "I'll answer three of your questions. Then that's it. You can't ask anymore, and you certainly can't keep trying to dig up information about me."

Max held House's eyes as he thought over her demands.

She was playing a dangerous game as his questions could be about anything.

"You'll tell the truth?" He asked.

She nodded, but in her mind, she knew that there was a chance that she wouldn't. It just depended on what questions he asked.

House walked away from the desk and took a seat on the sofa across the room. He got comfortable before turning his attention back to Max. He had no idea why she fascinated him so much. Maybe it was because she was smart. Something House found was a rare occurrence in most people these days.

"I get to ask you questions too," Max added. "Honest answers."

"I know what quid pro quo means," House stated rolling his eyes.

Max grinned, "What's your first question?" inside she was nervous.

"What was your SAT score?"

"You're assuming that I went to, and finished high school," Max replied. "For all you know, I could be a sixth-grade dropout."

House smiled in amusement and said, "What was your score?"

"2200," Max stated. "What was yours?" She asked.

House didn't say anything and his eyes flickered slightly.

"Oh!" Max exclaimed suddenly, straightening up in her chair. "My scores higher than yours isn't it?" She laughed and shook her head happily. "That's awesome. Ok, I don't need to know your score."

House glared at her briefly, "That still counts as one of your questions." He told her.

Max laughed again, "I don't care."

House rolled his eyes before asking his next question.

"Why aren't you in college?" He asked her seriously. "If you're this smart? You could be doing anything you wanted."

"I could," Max agreed.

"So why aren't you?"

Max bit her lower lip slightly. "I just…I needed a break," She replied honestly. "There's just," she paused and sighed. "I have a lot of stuff going on. College is the last thing I'm thinking about."

"Why?" House asked, actually curious.

"Is that your last question?"

House shook his head, "No. My last question is – why are you working as an assistant when you could be doing anything. You obviously are smart enough to do whatever you wanted."

Max shrugged, "its good dental coverage." She joked. Then she saw his serious look and sighed. "This is just…where I need to be."

Before House could comment on that Max looked over at the clock on the wall.

"It's late." She said suddenly. "I got to go." She stood up quickly and gathered a few things. "Great chat Dr House."

With that, Max quickly left without another word.

House stayed sitting on the sofa, thinking about Max and her answers. He still couldn't figure her out. Which both intrigued and annoyed him. He slowly stood up and decided to just go home and think.

 ** _**House MD**_**

The next day, House walked into the hospital and spotted Cuddy heading towards the elevator. He quickly made his way over to her and joined her before the doors closed.

"I wanna hire a new team member" House announced suddenly.

"Ah," Cuddy began, startled. "What? Why? Did something happen with Cameron, Chase or Foreman that I should know about?" She asked, looking at him curiously.

"No, they're all doing their part." He replied. "I just want another team member."

"House, you can't just get another team member because you want one," Cuddy told him firmly. "Besides, there is no room in the budget to pay another staff member."

House thought for a moment and just as the elevator doors opened he said, "What if I cut down the pay of the other three? Then can I use the leftover money to hire another person?"

Cuddy sighed before stepping out of the elevator. House quickly followed and together they walked down the hall.

"First off, you don't have the authority to do that," Cuddy told him as they walked. "Second, even if you did I can't allow that. It wouldn't be fair to the others. Unless, by some miracle, they agree to it. Which I don't think they would."

"What if…" House thought for a moment. "What if _I_ take a pay cut? Then can I hire someone new?"

Cuddy stopped in her tracks and turned to him. Her eyes wide in shock. This was not the House she knew.

"You really want to hire someone that badly?" She asked carefully. Surely this was some sort of trick?

House gave a half nod, half shrug in response.

"Who do you want to hire?" Cuddy asked carefully. "This isn't going to turn out to be some sort of ploy for you to get, like a full-time masseuse in your office twenty-four seven is it?"

"I'm hurt that you'd think that." He said in a mock hurt tone.

Cuddy rolled her eyes and folded her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes at him.

"So, what is going on?" She asked

"I'll get back to you." He told her before he turned and hobbled back towards the elevator.

"Wait! House!" Cuddy called but he ignored her.

 ** _**House MD**_**

"Do you want to be a doctor?"

Max looked up from her desk. She had been busy typing on the computer and hadn't paid attention when House had entered the office.

"Huh?" She sighed and shook her head slightly before meeting his eyes. "That sounds like a personal question, and if I remember our deal, you've already had your three questions."

"Ok, I'll make it a statement." He smirked. "You want to be a doctor."

"You don't know that." She shot back, smiling herself.

"Your constant interest in my cases, not to mention your choice of reading material suggests otherwise."

"Ok," Max nodded slowly, agreeing with House. "Maybe it _is_ something that I've wanted to do. But, remember the no college thing? Don't think I can just be a doctor without passing all the tests. And like I said, I'm having time out from all that."

"What about an internship?" He inquired. "No tests. Might be some studying but at least no essays. Plus on the job learning with actual patients."

"Yeah, but where would I find that kind of internship? Especially without a college education? I don't think many hospitals will let someone with no qualifications get that close to patients."

"You get close to patients now." He pointed out.

"Yes, but I'm not actually treating them." She replied, "I'm just-"

"-Giving an opinion." House rolled his eyes slightly. "Yes, yes. You're very opinionated."

"I know," Max smiled, almost cockily.

House smirked, "You wanna be my intern?"

"What?" Max asked, shocked. "Seriously?" She looked him over, trying to decide if he was messing with her or not. "Wh-why? What's in it for you?"

House shrugged and looked away for a moment.

"You're smart. I could use you on my team." He admitted honestly.

He looked back and saw Max chewing on her bottom lip slightly.

"Have you asked Dr Cuddy? I don't want to leave her in the lurch without an assistant." Max said slowly. "Besides, would you even be allowed to hire me?"

"Probably," House said with another shrug. "So?"

"Um," Max began slowly. Clearly weighing her options in her own mind. "Can I think about it?"

"Is that a no?" He asked.

"No," Max said with a small smile. "It's an 'I need time to think'"

House nodded and then walked out leaving Max alone with her thoughts and his offer.

He had to wonder about her question, what was in it for him? He had met smart doctors before, but he had never wanted one of them on his team before. There was just something about Max that made him want to bring out her potential.

 ** _**House MD**_**

After House had left, Max pulled her cell out of her pocket and dialled a number quickly. She placed the phone to her ear and waited for the ringing to stop.

"Hi, It's me." She said into the phone. "Do you have time to talk? I need your advice….No, not about that…I still haven't told them…I'm just waiting until I find out more about them….No, no I will do it. Just not now."

She rolled her eyes as she listened to the person on the other end for a minute.

"Look," She said suddenly, stopping them mid-sentence. "House just offered me a job, or well like an intern type thing…Yes, I am aware that I haven't been to college…Oh, don't start," She groaned and rolled her eyes as she listened to the familiar lecture of how dropping out of school was a bad idea. "You sound like mom… Yeah it, it would be a good opportunity…A great opportunity actually, but….I don't know if I can."

She paused once more before looking around the room.

"It's not that I don't want too, and it would be a great way of getting to know him….it's just…Being Cuddy's assistant means I can get close to both of them, and… I don't know, Dr Cuddy just doesn't seem to want to know that much about me…No, I mean in a good way. She's not prying about my life…I think Dr House, or at the very least one of his team would…Yeah," She sighed and leaned back in her chair. "Yeah, I know what I'm gonna do."  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

A few hours later, Max came into House's office. She made a quick look to make sure that none of his team were there. She didn't want to see Chase as they hadn't really talked since she had turned down his offer of a date. It wasn't that she didn't find him attracted, it was just that she didn't want to get distracted from what she was doing and why she was here.

She also didn't want to see Cameron. After their little fight, Max had gone out of her way to avoid Cameron as much as she could. It was just more peaceful that way.

"I've thought about it," Max announced, walking over to House, who was sitting at his desk.

House turned to her and grinned slightly.

"And?" He asked.

Max took a calm breath before answering. "And, I'm going to have to say no."

House sat up straighter and looked at her carefully. That was not the answer he had expected.

"Why?" He asked.

"I'm just not ready for that kind of commitment to a job. And it sounds like a lot of work."

House narrowed his eyes slightly, "From what I've heard," He began "You do more work than you're required to now."

"True," Max agreed. "But, I like working for Dr Cuddy. I want to keep working for her. Besides," She began flippantly "If I worked with you, I'd have to work with Dr Cameron. I don't think she'd like that."

"So, you won't take the job because of Cameron?" He asked

"No, well, not really," Max said quickly. "I really do like working with Dr Cuddy."

House looked at her for a moment. He wondered if he could do or say anything to change her mind. She held his eyes and he realised that there probably wasn't.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House found Wilson sitting in the cafeteria, eating a plate of chip and salad. Without saying a word, he sat down opposite his friend and reached over grabbing some of his chips and shoving them into his own mouth.

Wilson sighed and rolled his eyes at House's behaviour.

"House," Wilson said in a bored tone.

"You need a team," House said after a moment.

"Like yours?" Wilson asked. "You trying to pawn them off on me? Why what did they do?"

"You can't have my team," House said, a tiny glare in his gaze. "You need your own team."

"And I suppose you have some candidates in mind?" Wilson asked, curious.

"One candidate." House nodded. He paused and stole more of Wilson's chips before he continued. "You should ask Max."

"Max?" Wilson was confused. "You mean, Cuddy's assistant Max?"

"Yep."

"But…she's not a doctor." Wilson began slowly. "I don't think she's even in college."

"She's not." House agreed.

"So, then, why would I want to hire her when she has no educational background?"

"Because she's smart." House pointed out as if he was stating something obvious. "You said yourself that she is interested in medicine."

"So, I should offer her a job so she can learn?"

"Bingo." House winked, as he clicked his fingers and then pointed towards Wilson.

"Well," Wilson began slowly, trying to get his head around his friend's thinking. "Why don't you offer her a job?"

"I did," House replied. "She said no."

"So then why do you want me to ask her? If she already said no to you why would she say yes to me?"

"Maybe she said no because she doesn't want to work with me," House admitted. "I have a bit of a reputation you know."

"Gee, really." Wilson sighed sarcastically.

"-She might accept if she can work with you." House continued, ignoring Wilson's sarcasm. "Your reputation is that you are nicer."

"That's not hard." Said Wilson. "But why?"

"Cause she's a smart kid," House said, with a shrug. "She could learn a lot, and she'd make a great doctor."

"No, I mean…Why do you care so much?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

House groaned and rolled his eyes.

"Fine. It was just a suggestion."

House stood up, grabbed one last chip from Wilson's plate and then walked off.

Wilson sat in the middle of the cafeteria with a seriously confused look on his face.

House couldn't answer Wilson's question, because well…He didn't know why he cared so much. Maybe all this stuff with looking for his daughter was muddling his brain.

 **To Be Continued…**


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter Nineteen**

It had been a little over a month since House had found out that he had a daughter out there somewhere. Not just a daughter, but a daughter that was part his, part Lisa Cuddy's, his boss.

He still didn't fully believe it, and he didn't think he would until he actually saw the girl. Whoever she may be, or wherever she may be.

So far the private investigator he had hired had not been able to help much. He had found a baby born around the same time but that had ended up being a boy, so not their child. Cuddy didn't know much about her child but she knew she was a girl.

House found the entire situation to be extremely frustrating and there wasn't really anything he could do about it. On top of all that, his leg was giving him extra trouble today. He knew that his leg pain being worse was directly related to his bad mood. The worse his mood was, the worse the pain got. The worse the pain got, the worse his mood got. It was a never-ending cycle.

So now, House was sitting in his office, rubbing his thigh muscle vigorously while waiting for his team to get back from running tests on their latest patient. He had already snapped at them causing them to flee rather quickly when the opportunity presented itself.

He reached for his pills with the hand that wasn't rubbing his thigh. He shook the bottle and frowned at the sound that it made. He opened it and saw that there were only two pills left. His pain had been so bad that he hadn't noticed that he was almost out. He tipped the last few pills out into his hand before tilting his head back and tossing them down his throat.

He tried to keep his mind off his pain, while he waited for the Vicodin to kick in but after what felt like an eternity (which in reality was ten minutes) with no change he decided that he couldn't handle it anymore. He grabbed his cane and pulled himself to his feet.

Shakily, he made his way out the door and headed towards Wilson's office. He hoped that Wilson would write him a new prescription without asking too many questions.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Wilson wasn't in his office, and House was too desperate to wait for him or try to track him down. Instead, he headed to his next option – Cuddy.

Cuddy had helped him out when he had been in pain before, and he just hoped that she would do it again.

As he made his way to her office, he was glad that no one approached him. Probably because he had a seething look on his face.

He finally made it into Cuddy's office and found her sitting behind her desk doing some sort of paperwork. He slams the office door behind him as he walks in to get her attention. She jumps and looks up at him, an expression of surprise etched on her face.

"House?" She begins, looking him over. "What is it? Did you hear any ne-"

"-I need a shot of morphine." He replied, his voice shaking slightly.

Cuddy's eyes filled with concern as she stood up and made her way over to him slowly.

"House, what's wrong?" Cuddy asks softly. Almost afraid to spook him.

"My damn leg! That's what's wrong!" He shouted angrily back at her.

"I-"

"-I'm in pain. Fix it!" He demanded.

"House, I can't just give you a morphine injection whenever you want one." She told him but there was guilt shining in her eyes. "If your leg hurts, take your Vicodin."

"I did, it didn't work and I don't have any more!"

Cuddy looked at him in confusion for a moment before slowly speaking, "What do you mean you don't have any more? You're always on top of that. How did you run out without knowing?" Then she frowned, disappointment now spreading across her face. "House, you've taken way too many haven't you," She said and it was a statement, not a question.

He suddenly slammed his can down hard on her desk, making Cuddy jump and gasp.

"Of course I did!" He shouted. "I just told you I'm in pain! Get me some morphine!"

"House, if the Vicodin isn't working we can try to work out another wa—"

"-I don't need for you to discuss my pill-popping habits!"

"House, you have a problem. Morphine will only be a temporary fix for that." Cuddy tried to plead with him.

She walked over to him and gently placed a hand on his forearm in an act of support and kindness. As soon as she touched him though, he pulled back from her as if her touch had caused him more pain. Cuddy was hurt by his action but tried not to show it as she pulled her hand back.

"I'm sorry House." She said softly.

"You're sorry?" He questioned, his eyes glaring at her. "You're sorry? That's it? This is your fault and all you can say is _'I'm sorry'_?" He demanded, bitterness spitting out with every word.

Cuddy was taken aback. She stood with her mouth slightly opened as she stared at him in shock.

Without stopping to notice her reaction, House continued his rant. "I'm in pain because of my leg. I'm stressed and I'm in pain. Both of which are _your_ fault! I ran out of my pills because I'm too busy trying to find a kid that you kept from me for twenty god damn years!"

"H-House…" Cuddy tried to speak but her voice was shaking too much.

"And now, I'm wasting my time and my money trying to find a kid that I don't want. That I would have _never_ wanted!"

House finally stopped to look up at Cuddy. Tears were silently flowing from her eyes and down her cheeks.

He knew he had gone too far, and he knew he should stop and apologise but he couldn't. He was in too much pain and rational thought was just not something that he was capable of at the moment.

"I'm done!" He snapped, before turning quickly. "I'll get the morphine myself!"

He angrily limped out of her office and slammed the door once again, almost hard enough to break it but not quit.

Cuddy was frozen to her spot. She couldn't do anything but stare at the door he'd just gone through, mouth open and tears still running down her face.

 **To Be Continued…**


	20. Chapter 20

**Author's Note –** _This chapter is the first to contain M (adult) rated stuff. Even though it's probably not the best._ ****

 **Chapter Twenty**

It was late in the afternoon when Max headed back towards Cuddy's office. She had been exploring the hospital, looking for a quiet place to be alone with her drawings. There wasn't much work to do so she had spent an hour on the roof, drawing in her sketchbook. She wasn't going to make a habit of disappearing. It was just nice to know that she could if she wanted to. She still had a lot going on and time to herself was something that she needed from time to time.

Max wanted to see if Cuddy wanted to go and grab a coffee with her. Max raised her hand to open Cuddy's office door, but paused and frowned when she heard yelling. Her smile faulted and she frowned.

She could hear House shouting.

 _"…to find a kid that I don't want. That I would have never wanted!"_

Max suddenly didn't know what to do. She was suddenly really angry. Hurt and angry. She couldn't bring herself to stay and hear any more. Instead, she turned and almost ran out of the office and out of the hospital.

She made her way out into the street in front of the hospital. Fighting back tears of anger, Max spotted a taxi and walked quickly towards it.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Max had given the taxi driver the address to House's apartment building. She knew where he lived because she had been sure to read through his employee file at the hospital.

The taxi pulled up and Max said a quick thankful before tossing money towards the driver before climbing out.

She was running on adrenaline, on anger, on pain. She wasn't thinking straight and she knew this so as she made it the apartment complex' stairs, she stopped and pulled out her cell.

It rang several times before the tone to signal that it had gone to voicemail sounded against her ear.

"It's me." She said, biting her lower lip slightly. "Can you call me when you can?"

She paused as she headed towards House's front door.

"Everything sucks!" She said into the phone. Her voice cracking ever so slightly. "And I think I'm about to do something really stupid… Just, call me back. Please."

Max placed her cell back into her pocket and then took a deep breath as she stared at the door in front of her. An inner battle waged within her. Keep going on the path of anger or leave and calm down. The words she had heard House say came flooding back to her and suddenly rational thought went out the window. She had always had anger management issues and it had often gotten her into trouble.

Her decision made, she crouched onto her knees and pulled out a small pocket knife she always kept on her. She used the knife and placed it into the keyhole of the door. A slight rebellious stage in her early teenage years, as well as a not so good boyfriend, had taught her how to break into places when she wanted to. Something she tried not to do anymore but something she could never forget how to do.

She heard a click and knew that the door was now open. She stood up and pushed it opened.

She walked inside and took a moment to look around the obvious living area. Any other time, she would have explored. Gotten to know House better, but right now she could only focus on the pain and the anger that she felt.

Suddenly, not thinking, Max walked over to the glass coffee table in front of the sofa and angrily picked it up and threw it as far as she could across the room. Letting out an anguished cry as she did. It landed face down and shattered on the floor. Max wasn't sure what happened next, she seemed to leave her body as her anger overtook her.

She found anything that she could get her hands on, picked it up and threw it, breaking everything that she could She picked something up, she didn't stop to see what it was before she threw it at the flat screen TV. The TV's screen cracked. She found his guitar and picked it up before smashing it against the piano keys repeatedly. Each time she made a half yell, half cry noise of pain and anger. With one last hit, the guitar broke into two pieces.

Max finally stopped, breathing deeply and looked around at what she had just done. She swallowed as a silent tear ran down her left cheek. This was too much. She needed to get out of here. She needed….something.

She quickly ran out the door, not looking back.

She kept running until she was two blocks away from House's apartment. She stopped and leaned heavily against the nearest building. Letting out a frustrated, short scream, she threw her arm back and punched the wall behind her before tilting her head up and blinking back her tears.

After several minutes, she reached up and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She sniffed and then grabbed her cell out of her pocket again.

"Hi." She said when someone answered. "Do you want to meet up?"

 ** _**House MD**_**

Chase was sitting at the bar of a club that he had never been to before. It wasn't a place he would usually go, but he had gotten a call from Max asking if he wanted to meet up. She had told him to come here and he had agreed eagerly. He hoped that maybe she had changed her mind and had decided to have a few drinks with him.

In front of him sat the two beers that he had already ordered as he waited for Max to show up.

He turned around on his stool so that he could see her coming and after a few minutes, he saw Max walk into the club and head in his direction.

"Hey," He smiled. "I got you a b—"

He was cut off as Max forcefully grabbed him by the collar, before crashing her lips against his. Chase stood still, not moving for a moment before instinct took over. He allowed Max to pull him up from the stool as he wrapped his arms tightly around her back. Chase could hear people whistling and cheering somewhere around him, but he couldn't focus. All he could think about was the feel of Max's tongue in his mouth as she kissed him.

He wasn't sure how long they stayed like that but soon they both pulled back and panted slightly, trying to catch their breath. Chases eyes roamed over Max's face, trying to silently ask her what that was about.

"You still wanna go out with me?" Max asked suddenly. Her voice a determined whisper.

Chase swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat and nodded, "Yeah."

"You wanna take me home?" She asked.

Again, Chase nodded. "Yes."

"Good." Max nodded. She let her hands fall from his collar before grabbing one of his hands in hers. "Take me home." She said, and it was a direction, not a statement.

Chase, once again nodded, the beers he had paid for already forgotten as he allowed Max to lead him out of the club.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Chase and Max hadn't spoken since they had gotten into his car at the club. Instead, they had remained silent as he drove them back to his place.

Chase was suddenly very nervous. Not because he was about to get laid. It wasn't as if he hadn't picked up girls at a bar before. But this was Max, she was… different.

He pulled up at his apartment and turned the car off. He turned to say something to Max but saw that she was already stepping out of the car. Chase quickly did the same and then led her to his front door.

As soon as the door was opened, Max had her lips on his once more. She brought her hands up and placed them into his blonde hair, gripping onto him almost as if she were afraid he would pull back if she let him go.

It only took Chase a milli-second to respond before he had his arms wrapped around her lower back once again. This isn't exactly how he had wanted a date with Max to start, but he wasn't going to complain.

He was brought out of his thoughts when Max lightly bit his lower lip before she pulled back and gasped. Chase then moved his mouth to her neck and began sucking on her pulse which was beating rather fast. Max busied her hands with the task of removing Chase's jacket and then unbuttoning his shirt. Chase's mouth found hers once again as he allowed her to pull his shirt from his body.

Still kissing, Max lightly ran her fingernails down Chase's chest and stomach. When she reached the waistline of his jeans, she grabbed hold of his belt and pulled his pelvis into her own. Chase couldn't help but let out a moan against her lips.

Suddenly passion overtook Chase and he roughly pushed Max up against the nearest wall. Max didn't seem to mind, and in response, he hears her let out her own little moan. The sound vibrating against his lips. He pulled back only long enough to pull her t-shirt over her head. She raised her arms over her head to assist him in taking her shirt off. Once it was off, Chase tossed the garment across the room.

Chase looked down at Max, standing before him in only her jeans and black lace bra. He swallowed and wanted to say something, tell her that she was stunning, ask her if she really wanted this. Before he could open his mouth, however, Max's mouth was back on his and her arms wrapped around his neck.

Chase's own hands went to Max's waist. He pulled her against him and then lifted her up. Max took the hint and jumped up, wrapping her legs around him tightly. Still kissing, Chase walked the two of them towards his bedroom.

He walked back towards the bed until the back of his legs hit the mattress. Then he fell backwards, taking Max with him. She sat up and adjusted her position so that she could straddle him a bit better.

She grinned down at him and all other thoughts left Chase's brain.

 ** _**House MD**_**

The sky was dark and cloudy when House finally made it home. He managed to steal some morphine from the clinic and had spent the rest of the day sitting up on the office roof, avoiding everyone. Avoiding Cuddy. And when he started to feel 'normal' again and like he could function he made his way out of the hospital. He didn't see Cuddy as he left. Not that he looked. He didn't want to, he just wanted to get home and forget about the day he'd just had.

He was too busy thinking about Cuddy and what he had said to her that he didn't notice that his door was slightly opened until he was right in front of it.

"What the…." He spoke out loud.

He lifted his cane and used the tip to push the door fully open. He stepped cautiously into his own home as he wasn't sure what to expect. The place had been completely destroyed. There were things broken all over the floor. His guitar lay broken next to his piano. The piano itself had keys missing. His TV had a huge crack in it. There was glass all over the floor. The remained of what used to be his coffee table.

His place had been broken into. That much was obvious, the question was why? He quickly made his way through the rest of the rooms. No other room seemed to have been touched. He double checked each room one more time to see if anything had been taken. Nothing was missing. Not even his several hidden stashes of Vicodin had been touched.

After he was done checking his entire place, House grabbed his cell and called the police to report what had happened.

 **To Be Continued…**


	21. Chapter 21

**Author's Notes:** _I have changed the story's genres to Drama and Hurt/Comfort_ ****

 **Chapter Twenty-one**

House walked into the hospital the next day. The police hadn't been much help last night. All they'd done is asked him some questions and then told him that they would 'look into it'. He knew it wouldn't be high on their list of things to do so he wasn't going to hold his breath for a phone call.

After the police had left, House had spent the remainder of the night cleaning up his living room. He had to throw most of what was there out. His piano and guitar were goners. He'd have to replace them both, as well as his TV. The TV he didn't care about. But the piano and guitar…that hurt.

He had managed to get a few hours of sleep but they were not restful by any means. He couldn't stop thinking. Not about the crime that had happened but about what he had said to Cuddy. He hadn't meant what he had said. He knew that but he couldn't help but say it. He was in so much pain and he wanted to cause her just as much pain and he knew saying what he said would do that.

He didn't know what to do now.

He was brought out of his thoughts when Wilson suddenly joined his side as he continued walking towards his office. Wilson was smiling and going on about random chit-chat stuff, but House was too busy thinking to pay attention.

"House, are you listening?" Wilson asked.

"No," House said shortly.

They reached his office and walked in, hoping that Wilson wouldn't follow but he did.

"What's going on?" Wilson asked, walking behind House.

"My place was broken into last night," House said, sitting down heavily in his chair.

"Whoa!" Wilson exclaimed in shock. "When? Where you there? Did they take anything? Do you know who did it?" He asked quickly, barely pausing between each question.

House rolled his eyes. "No," he sighed. "It happened before I got home."

"What did they take?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?" Wilson repeated puzzled. "Someone broke into your place but didn't take anything?"

"Yep."

"What did they do then?"

House shrugged, "Trashed the place. My living room is completely destroyed. My piano, my guitar, my television—"

"-Do you think it was random?" Wilson asked suddenly. "Or someone with a grudge?"

House looked at him with an annoyed expression.

"I'm just saying," Wilson continued. "You do tend to rub people the wrong way. Maybe someone's decided to get revenge. Any ideas who could have done it?"

"If I did I would call the police and tell them." House snapped.

"Fair enough," Wilson sighed, placing a hand up in defence. He paused before asking, "Are you alright though?"

"Yeah," House sighed. He just wanted this conversation to end and to be left alone with his own thoughts.

"Are you sure?" Wilson asked, raising an eyebrow slightly. "You look like crap, What's going on?"

"Nothing," House muttered. Then he stood up, grabbed his cane and started walking towards his office door once again. "Gotta go," he said quickly.

He left abruptly, leaving a very confused Wilson standing alone in his office.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House couldn't stop thinking about Cuddy and he knew that he wouldn't be able to do anything else until he sorted it out. He made her way to her office and was thankful that Max wasn't there. For someone who was meant to be Cuddy's assistant, Max sure did spend a lot of time away from her desk. House couldn't think about that right now.

He went to Cuddy's door and knocked on it gently.

"Come in," He heard her call softly.

He opened the door and poked his head in. Cuddy looked over at him and frowned deeply. He could see the hurt in her eyes, as well as the guilt.

She swallowed and tried to compose herself. "House," She began, trying to put on her best 'administrator' voice. Trying to show him that he wasn't going to get to her. Not today. "Did you need something?" She asked.

House sighed before he took a few steps towards her desk. He stood in front of it and leaned heavily on his cane.

"I didn't mean it," He said in a hushed tone, avoiding her gaze. "What I said last night."

"You don't say things you don't mean." Cuddy accused him.

"I was in pain."

"Your pain doesn't make you lie, House." She told him softly, "If anything it makes you _more_ honest."

"Cuddy…" House began, but he didn't know what to say so he trailed off.

Cuddy sighed deeply and shook her head sadly. "I know I've done a lot of things to you. Your leg. This child…And I will always feel guilty. That will never change. I don't need you to point it out and make me feel worse…Not that you could. I feel pretty shit already."

"That wasn't my intention." He answered softly, finally meeting her gaze.

Cuddy scoffed, letting out a short laugh. "Yes, it was. That's always your intention. To lash out and make other people suffer the same that you suffer. Or worse."

"Cuddy, I don't blame you."

"You do, House." She exclaimed. "And I'm ok with that. I accept it, but…it doesn't mean it doesn't hurt."

There was a thick layer of silence that settled between them. Cuddy's eyes shone with unshed tears. Tears that she was trying so hard not to let fall. Only House could make her feel this way, and he was also the only one that she didn't want to see her this way.

House eyes darted around the room for a few minutes before the settled back on to Cuddy's face. A pang of his own guilt hit him briefly as he saw her eyes.

"I still need to find our daughter." He said softly. Almost in a whisper.

"Why?" Cuddy asked, blinking several times.

House looked at her with an expression of shock, "Because…she's our daughter. She's out there somewhere. I'm curious."

"But do you _want_ to find her?" Cuddy asked.

"I just said I do," He shot back gently, his hands twisting repeatedly around to hook of his cane.

"No." Cuddy shook her head. "You said you _need_ to. Not that you _want_ to."

"Isn't it the same thing?" He asked

"I don't know," Cuddy sighed and looked down. "I really don't…"

The silence stretched between them once more.

"Cuddy…" House sighed slowly. "I want to find her." He admitted seriously. "I want to find her with you. I won't lash out at you about it anymore."

"You can't promise that," She muttered sadly. "If you have another day when your pain becomes unbearable—"

"—Then I'll stay away from you." He offered. "I'll hide in my apartment, or I'll find someone else to verbally attack. But I won't come to you. Ok?" He asked softly.

"…Ok." Cuddy nodded.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Chase was in the clinic, passing a patient's file to one of the nurses when he spotted Max walking towards the nurse's station.

He hadn't seen her since their little get together last night. She wasn't even there when he woke up that morning. He wanted to talk to her. To find out where he head was and if she wanted the same thing that he did.

"Uh, Max…" he called out before walking over to her.

Max looked up at him and then quickly looked around, almost as if she were trying to find an escape route.

"Hey," Chase sighed when he reached her. "So, um…"

"So…" Max nodded awkwardly.

"I, ah, I didn't expect you to leave. You know."

"Yeah," Max breathed out. "Look, Chase…last night was fun—"

"-Fun?" He asked.

"Ok, it was really, really fun." Max smiled briefly. "But it was just a one-off thing."

"Why?" Chased asked, puzzled. "I mean if we both had a good time. Couldn't it be more of a regular thing?"

Max bit her bottom lip slightly before looking over at Chase and shaking her head.

"Last night was just what I needed." She explained. "And I'm sorry if I gave you the wrong impression, but I really am not looking for any type of relationship. Casual or otherwise."

"Oh," Chase said, taken aback.

"Yeah." Max sighed. "I am sorry"

At that moment, House made his way over to them. He had finished talking with Cuddy and after their chat, she had told him to go and do a few hours in the clinic. He agreed because he felt like maybe he owed her. Doing clinic hours would be his way of saying sorry, without actually saying it.

Things were still raw between them but their talk was a start.

"Are you still flirting with each other?" House snapped rudely.

"Are you here to help in the clinic? Or to be annoying?" Chase asked House.

House smirked at the two of them. "Can't I do both."

House looked over at Max and realized that she was intentionally avoiding his gaze. He frowned slightly.

"So what are you up too?" He asked Max carefully.

"Nothing!" Max shot back quickly, still not looking at him. "Look, I better get back to work."

Max quickly walked away and headed towards her office. Leaving both men looking after her and frowning.

"Ok," Chase began, his frown still across his face. "I know why she's being weird around me." He paused and looked at House. "Why is she being weird around _you_?"

"Hhmm," House hummed thoughtfully. "Good question."

 ** _**House MD**  
_**  
After spending an hour and a half in the clinic, House had headed towards Wilson's office. He found Wilson sitting at his desk and reading over a patient's head scans.

"I think Max is the one who broke into my apartment," House announced loudly before he even stepped fully into the room.

"What?" Wilson asked. He looked up at House in confusion. "Max? Cuddy's assistant, Max?"

"Yep," House said with a nod.

He moved and heavily sat down in the chair in front of Wilson. His friend frowned at him.

"How did you go from _'give Max a job. She'll be a doctor.'_ To _'she broke into my apartment'_?" Wilson asked carefully.

House shrugged.

"Do you have proof?"

"No."

"Then how do you know she did it?"

"She's acting weird. Even Chase thinks so." House told him seriously. "She's avoiding me."

"Most people tend to avoid you, House." Wilson sighed. "Doesn't mean you should label each and every one of them as a suspect. Hell, I avoid you sometimes."

"Max doesn't avoid me." House began, more thinking out loud than actually engaging Wilson in conversation. "If anything," He continued, "She goes out of her way to talk to me."

"So then why do you think she would trash your apartment?" Wilson asked. "Did you say something to her? Do something?"

"No."

"So, your theory is…What exactly?" Wilson began to ask, shaking his head slightly. "That Max broke into your apartment and broke lots of stuff because…she was bored?"

House groaned and Wilson in annoyance. "She's hiding something." He snapped in frustration.

"Yeah, didn't we already go through this?" Wilson asked, rolling his eyes. "She's a very private person. She's probably hiding lots of things. Doesn't mean she broke into your place."

"Don't you think it's weird that the day after my place is trashed, she starts acting weird around me?" House asked, almost demanded.

Wilson thought for a moment before he sighed, "Well why don't you just go and ask her?" He suggested. His tone dripping with sarcasm.

"Good idea," House quipped. He stood up quickly, "I'll go do that."

Then he quickly headed towards the door.

"No, House, I didn't me…." Wilson began to protest but House was already gone.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House determinedly made his way towards Cuddy's office in order to confront Max about his theory.

When he walked in, he found Max sitting in her chair slightly turned towards her computer. Her eyes darted back and forth as she read something on the computer screen. As she did this, her fingers moved up and down her desk mimicking those of a piano player. She was so engrossed in what she was doing that she didn't notice House straight away.

"What did you do last night?" He asked suddenly.

If Max was startled by him, she didn't show it. Instead, she stopped moving her fingers and turned to him and narrowed her eyes.

"What did _you_ do last night?" She shot back.

"I asked you first."

"Are you ten?" She asked in annoyance.

"Are you deflecting?" He shot back. "What did you do?"

"I'm sorry, but at what point did you think that my social life is any of your business?" Max asked sternly, folding her arms defensively over her chest.

"And again," House began, raising his arms as if gesturing to a room of people that were not there. "She deflects, ladies and gentlemen."

Max pushed her chair back and quickly stood up. Then she walked over to him defensively. Standing toe to toe with him.

"How about you just say what it is that you want to say?" Max dared him. Her eyes locking with him.

It was at the moment that Cuddy walked out of her own office. She stopped mid-stroll as she came face to face with House and Max, staring at each other.

"What the hell is going on?" Cuddy asked them. She looked from House to Max and back again in confusion. "House?"

House kept looking at Max as he answered Cuddy, "Someone broke into my place and trashed it last night." He told her.

"What?" Cuddy asked, shocked. "Why didn't you say anything? Are you alright?"

"He looks fine," Max scoffed.

"Ok," Cuddy began slowly. "But that doesn't explain whats going on here."

"I think Dr House is trying to accuse me of breaking into his place," Max said, looking briefly at Cuddy and then back at House.

"House, are you?" Cuddy gaped at him.

House lifted his cane and tipped the top towards Max. "She's isn't exactly acting innocent."  
"I—"Max began but Cuddy cut her off.

"—You can't just accuse people of a crime without any proof," Cuddy told him firmly as she folded her arms across her chest. "Do you have any proof?"

"…No…" House said as he lowered his cane. He had a _'feeling'_ but not actual proof.

"Then I think you owe Max an apology." Cuddy told him.

"Or I could ask her if she did it." House replied.

"Go ahead," sighed Max.

"That wont be necessary, House." Cuddy said suddenly. Both House and Max turned to face her fully. "Max was here with me last night working."

Max's eyes grew wide in shock as she looked at Cuddy. She was lying for her. Why was she lying for her? She didn't owe her anything. She didn't even really know her.

House looked Cuddy over and tried to decide if she was lying or not. Normally he could pick her 'tells' and knew when she was lying and when she wasn't. This time though, he couldn't tell.

"Ok," He nodded.

He turned back to Max, who quickly blinked to cover her own surprise.

House turned and walked out. After he had left Max took a deep breath and smiled awkwardly at Cuddy.

"Um… Thanks." She sighed.

Cuddy shrugged and walked over to Max. She placed a gentle hand on Max's forearm and squeezed it reassuringly. After a moment she let go and smiled.

"Just get back to work."

Max nodded and watched as Cuddy started to head back into her own office. Just as she opened the door, Max called out to her.

"Aren't you going to ask me?" She said suddenly. "If I did it?"

Cuddy paused and looked back at her.

"I don't need to know." She replied softly before going back into her own office.  
 **  
To be continued…**


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

Two days had passed since someone had broken into House's apartment. He still had a feeling that something was going on with Max, but Cuddy had given her an alibi. If she was lying, then he had no idea why she would lie. He decided to let it go for now and instead focus on finding his daughter. Besides, Cuddy seemed pretty attached to Max so he doubted that she would allow him to keep accusing her.

Max, for the most part, wasn't avoiding him as much anymore. She seemed to be acting normal again. Or at least what he would have considered normal for her. Though he did notice she kept her distance from Chase. He briefly thought that maybe something had happened between the two of them, and that idea bothered him for some reason. He put it down to the fact that he still had a feeling that Max was the one who broke into his place and nothing else.

It was the middle of the day and House was sitting on the floor of his office. His back against the wall as he spun his cane in his hand. Cameron and Chase were helping out in the ER and Foreman was down in the clinic. They had no case so House himself was only killing time until he could go home without getting an earful from Cuddy.

His place had been tidied up a bit, and he had gotten Wilson to help him get a new TV. He still needed a new guitar and a new piano but that could wait for the weekend.

Suddenly his cell started ringing. He sighed in annoyance at the interruption before pulling it out of his pocket. It was the investigator he had hired to find his and Cuddy's daughter.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House made his way to Cuddy's office, more determined than most other days. When he got there though, neither Cuddy nor Max were anywhere to be seen. He limped out of Cuddy's office and made his way towards a nurse who was walking past.

"Where's Dr Cuddy?" He asked. Almost snapped.

"Ah," The nurse blinked quickly. She was taken aback as she hadn't expected a question from House. "I think she's having coffee with Ma—"

She couldn't finish what she was saying as House was already on his way to the elevators.

 ** _**House MD**_**

When House walked into the hospital cafeteria, he easily spotted Cuddy and Max sitting at one of the tables. They were both laughing.

"So, are we just going to sit here and have coffee whenever I'm having a – what did you call it? – a bad day?" Cuddy asked Max.

"Probably," Max replied with a smile. "Seems like we always do."

Cuddy laughed once again and it was at that moment that House moved towards them and stopped in front of their table.

"Need you." He said to Cuddy.

Cuddy stopped laughing and turned to House. She could see the serious look in his eyes.

"Now," He sighed.

Cuddy slowly nodded before standing up. There was something in the way House said 'now' that made her realise that whatever it was it was serious and probably private.

"Excuse us, Max," Cuddy said, offering Max a small smile before she walked off beside House.

"What's going on?" Cuddy asked softly as she and House walked out of the cafeteria.

House looked at her out of the corner of his eye but didn't stop walking. "I think I found our daughter."

 ** _**House MD**_**

House had led Cuddy to his office and out onto the balcony. It gave them privacy and it also allowed him to keep an eye out through the glass to see if anyone would come into his office and interrupt them.

"You think you found her?" Cuddy asked. She tried to keep the hope out of her voice but she was failing miserably.

"I have a lead." He told her. "A better one than I've had in months."

"What is it?"

"I have an address of a couple living in California. But they were in the same area you gave birth back in 1986." He explained. "Apparently they came back with a baby girl." He paused before giving her a half cheeky smile. "I'm going to go and check it out, so I'm gonna need permission from my boss to have the next few days off."  
Cuddy nodded while trying to hold back her own smile of excitement. "Of course," Then she sighed. "I'm going with you."

"What?" House asked.

"You don't want me to come?" She asked, a hint of disappointment and rejection in her voice.

House looked at her for a moment. A part of him didn't want her to come just incase it turned out to be another dead end. He didn't want her getting her hopes up only to have them dashed once again.

"Are you sure you can just drop everything?"

She raised an eyebrow, "Isn't that what you're doing?"

He shrugged one shoulder. "I don't run a hospital."

"No," She agreed. "You just barely work in one." Her lips curled up ever so slightly.

House couldn't help but chuckle ever so slightly at her comment.

Cuddy's face turned serious again as she continued, "Just give me an hour to sort some things out. OK? Then we'll go together."

House nodded in agreement as he knew he wouldn't be able to stop her.

 ** _**House MD**_**

It hadn't taken long for Cuddy to organise what she needed too. She had spoken to Max and asked her to rearrange a few meetings, as well as take care of any calls or emails that may come up. She hadn't told Max where she was going or why, but Max didn't ask, which Cuddy was grateful for.

She'd managed to get a seat on the same flight as House and he even changed his seat in order to sit next to her.

He had, of course, filled Wilson in on what was happening. Wilson had wished them both luck before they went to their own places in order to pack an overnight bag. They later met at the entrance of the airport before boarding their flight.

They were now halfway through their flight. House was leaning his head back against his seat with his eyes closed, presumably sleeping. Cuddy, on the other hand, couldn't sleep. She could barely relax let alone sleep. She was nervous but also excited. She was happy but also scared. She started wringing a small towel through her fingers nervously.

"Stop that," House said suddenly. His eyes still closed.

Cuddy jumped slightly before turning her head towards him and frowned. "I thought you were asleep?"

"I can't sleep when you keep fidgeting like that." He replied, his eyes still closed but he could almost feel her rolling her eyes.

"Oh, I'm sorry that I am inconveniencing you," She sighed. She didn't stop what she was doing though.

House let out a deep sigh and finally opened his eyes. He reached a hand out and placed it on top of hers, stilling her hands. Cuddy looked down at his hand on hers before looking back up at him.

"You're over thinking." He told her in a soft tone. "Stop."

"I can't help it," She admitted. "What if…what if we do actually find her?"

"Then we'll deal with it." He replied, as he moved his hand from hers and placed it on his own lap.

"And what if we don't find her?"

"Then we'll deal with that too." He shook his head and sighed. "Let's just wait and see what happens. We can't change what will happen. So why waste our energy thinking about what ifs."

"And you're not over thinking this? You?" Cuddy question. Her eyebrow raised slightly.

"I might be." He admitted. "I'm just doing it inwardly."

 ** _**House MD**_**

Hours later, they landed in California and made their way to the motel where they had rooms booked. Their rooms were three doors down from each other. After they had both gotten settled in their rooms, the met out the front of the motel and waited for a taxi to come and picked them up.

"Are you ready?" House asked as he saw the yellow vehicle come towards them.

Cuddy swallowed nervously and slowly nodded her head. "As ready as I'll ever be."

The taxi pulled up beside them and House limbed forward and opened the door for Cuddy, letting her get into the car first. A gesture she would have usually called him out on but today her mind was elsewhere.

They drove in silence for almost an hour before the taxi pulled into the street that they were looking for.

"What number did you say again?" The taxi driver asked over his shoulder.

"Eighteen," House muttered as he stared out the window.

"Here we are then," said the driver as he pulled up in front of the house they were looking for.

"Oh," Cuddy sighed as she saw the house in front of them.

It was a very large house. Three levels yet no front gate. It was what you would call a 'rich person' house.

Cuddy opened the door and climbed out. House reached towards the driver and handed him a few notes.

"Wait here for a few minutes," House told the driver before he followed Cuddy out of the car.

When he reached Cuddy's side, House saw that she was now completely still. Almost frozen.

"You alright?" He asked her, placing a hand on her shoulder gently. "You wanna wait in the car and I'll—"

"—No," She said quickly. She shook her head and swallowed. She composed herself quickly and turned to him. "Let's go."

House lowered his arm and gave a short quick nod. He took the lead and led her towards the house's front door. House had to admit to himself that he was as nervous as hell, but he couldn't let Cuddy know that. No matter what happened he had to keep it together, for her.

They reached the front door and House used the top of his cane to bang against the wood three times. He stepped back and they waited. They didn't have to wait long before the door opened. Standing in front of them was a young man, most likely in his late twenties.

"Ah, Hi." The man said slowly as he opened the door fully. "Can I help you?"

"I hope so," Cuddy said, smiling nervously. "We were, um, told that Margaret and Adrian Ramirez live here. Do you know them?"

"Do you?" The man asked sceptically looking from House and Cuddy.

"Look it's important," House huffed impatiently. "We need to get in contact with them."

"Please," Cuddy sighed. "It's really important."

The man looked at Cuddy before he nodded. "Margaret and Adrian are mom and dad."

"Are they here?" House asked. He tilted his head to try and see past the man inside the house.

"No," The man said shaking his head. "No, they own this place but I live here."

"Right, well this is Dr Cuddy," House said, as he pointed his cane towards Cuddy. "And I'm Dr House." He put his cane down and continued, "We were told your parents adopted a baby girl back in 1986."

"I think you've got the wrong Margaret and Adrian." The man replied. "I'm an only child."

"You sure?" House demanded.

"Yeah," The man scoffed. He folded his arms over his chest in annoyance. "I think I would know if I grew up with a sister."

House opened his mouth to say something but Cuddy beat him to it.

"Ok." She said quickly. "Thanks anyway."

"No worries." The man smiled softly at Cuddy. He lowered his arms and said, "Good luck though."

Cuddy turned and started to walk back to the taxi. She kept herself together but House knew that she was upset. He turned back to the man briefly before he limped away to follow Cuddy.

 ** _**House MD**_**

The young man closed his front door and stood behind it. He peered out the window beside the door and watched as man and woman got back into the taxi. As the car pulled away, the man reached into his back pocket and pulled out his cell. He dialled a number and then placed the phone to his ear.

"Hey, it's me," He said to the person on the other end. "You'll never guess who was just here looking for you?... Your biological parents."

 **To Be Continued.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

Cuddy didn't say one word as they sat in the back of the taxi and made their way back to their motel. She kept her eyes down, avoiding his gaze the entire time. When they got back, Cuddy once again got out of the car first, leaving House to pay the fare.

Silently House limped after her as she slowly made her way to her room.

"Cuddy," House breathed out. He didn't know what to say. He had been so sure that this would have led them to their daughter.

"It's ok, House." She said slowly, turning around just before she got to her room's door so she could face him.

He could see that she was trying hard not to cry in front of him.

"Wanna get a drink?" He asked. Suddenly fidgeting with his cane nervously. "I think we could both use one."

Cuddy slowly shook her head. "Thanks, but I just want to have a shower and go to bed."

House was silent as he watched her disappear into her room. Once her door closed behind her, he let out a long sigh before he turned and walked off.  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

House had found a local bar only half a block away from the motel. He had been there for several hours yet he hadn't drunk much. In fact, he had the same beer sitting in front of him since he had first arrived.

The plan was to drink his issues away but he found he wasn't able to. He kept thinking about Cuddy and how hurt she obviously was. This is exactly why he hadn't wanted her to come with him. He knew that if they didn't find their daughter that it would devastate Cuddy. Now they had hit another dead end and he knew that she wouldn't be holding it together.

He looked at his now warm beer and made a decision. He slowly stood and headed to the bar's entrance.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House reached Cuddy's motel room and lightly knocked on the door with his cane. He heard some shuffling before the door opened slowly.

Cuddy stood before him, in a tank top and sweatpants. She had no make-up on and her hair was damp and slightly curled around her face and neck. She looked tired and depressed. Her eyes were red and he knew that she had been crying.

"It's late," She sighed, yet still stepped aside to let him in.

"You ok?" He asked as he limped into her room.

She stepped back and shrugged slightly. House watched as she moved to sit on the edge of the queens' size bed in the middle of the room. He slowly closed the door.

"Thought you were out drinking," She stated, looking over at him before she slid back against the headboard of the bed. She pulled her legs up towards her chest and folded her arms over her knees.

"The company sucked."

"Don't think it'll be much better in here." She admitted, looking over at him.

He nodded before slowly making his way over to the bed. He looked at her for a moment and then sat down in front of her.

"You sure you're ok?" He asked again.

Cuddy sighed, "It's just…it's been a long day. And not how I had hoped it would have gone."

House looked down at his cane resting between his knees. "Sorry," He muttered.

He didn't usually like to say the word "sorry" but he truly was. He was sorry that this had turned out to be a wild goose chase.

"Don't," She said softly. "It isn't your fault. I should have prepared myself better for the chance that we hit another dead end…I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up."

"You're an optimistic person," House began as he turned to look at her. "There's nothing wrong with that."

"There is when I end up getting hurt."

House turned away from her and let out a long breath. "We knew it would be a long shot."

"I know…"

They stayed silent for a few minutes until Cuddy broke the silence.

"I can't help but think of how different things would be if I had just told you I was pregnant twenty years ago."

House shook his head and turned to look at her. "We've been through this." He sighed. "It's pointless to think about it now. It won't make a difference."

"I know," Cuddy nodded. She bit her bottom lip slightly as tears began to pull in her eyes. "But I can't help it…"

"…A lot of things would have been different," House agreed softly while he leaned closer to her. "Believe me… I've thought about it."

"You have?" Cuddy asked. Her eyes widened briefly in surprise.

He nodded, "Yeah." He sighed once more. "We would have our daughter, we wouldn't have lost her, and you and I would have raised her. _Together_."

Cuddy almost let out a gasp when he said the word _'together'_ but she covered herself. However, House being House caught her reaction.

"She would have known that we wanted her," Cuddy said slowly. A single tear ran down her left cheek. "And that we loved her…"

Without thinking, House reached a handout and carefully brushed her tear away with his thumb. Cuddy's breath caught in her throat as she closed her eyes briefly before leaning into his touch. When she opened her eyes she wasn't surprised to see that House had moved closer to her.

She lowered her eyes and looked at his lips. Her own lips parted ever so slightly. House's own eyes flicked to Cuddy's lips and then back to her eyes. It was at that moment that their eyes met. House pressed his palm flat against her cheek before he leaned into her. At the same time, their eyes closed as their lips were a breath away from the others. Then House pressed his lips ever so gently against hers. He pulled back and opened his eyes to look into hers. He saw the same thing in her eyes as he felt. _Need. Want. Desire_.

Another tear silently escaped Cuddy's eye, and it was all House needed. He crashed his mouth against hers again, this time more urgently. Cuddy let out a shaky breath against his lips before she opened her mouth fully to him. House took the invitation and deepened the kiss.

House's hand on her cheek stayed where it was while his other hand made its way to her hip, his fingers lightly running up her side. Cuddy's own hands found their way into House's own hair. Her nails scrapping very slightly against his scalp and the nape of his neck.

They kissed passionately, their tongues duelling against the others. House moved his mouth from hers and trailed his kisses along the side of her neck, his stubble creating a pleasurable burning feeling against her skin. Cuddy moaned and tilted her head to give him more access to her skin. House moved his hand from her cheek down her body until it found the hem of her shirt.

Slowly, he curled the material of her shirt in his fingers before dragging the material up her skin to her chest. He hummed against her neck, the vibration of which made her moan once more. House pulled away just long enough to pull the shirt over Cuddy's head before tossing it across the room.

He sat back slightly so that he could see her. Really see her. There she was, Lisa Cuddy. His boss. His….Friend. The woman of many, many of his dreams. Her perfect breasts obstructed from his view only by the satin white bra that covered them. He watched them for a moment as they rose and fell heavily with her breathing. His looked back up at her face. Lisa Cuddy was in front of him. Wanting _him_. Needing _him_.

In half a second, House closed the gap between them and found her mouth with his once more. He pushed his weight against her, causing her to lay down on the mattress. House rolled over her so that he was half laying on the bed and half laying on her. They continued kissing as House's hands caressed her sides, his fingers alternating between deep caresses and light touches. Cuddy's own hands ran from the nape of his neck down his back and further down until she reached the hem. House helped her pull it up and over his head and then he tossed it behind him.

Time seemed to move faster and slow down all at the same time. House wasn't sure when it happened but they were both now naked from the waist up. He was still kissing Cuddy while his hands caressed the sides of her breasts, making her gasp and moan. He pushed his erection against her and she gasped loudly. He took that as an invitation and carefully pulled her pants and underwear down her legs. She twisted her legs slightly in order to kick the items off her legs and as she did this, House pulled his own pants and boxers down.

Both fully naked now, House moved until he was fully on top of her. He ran one hand down her sides and to her thigh. He glided his hand to the inside of her thigh before lifting her leg and placing it on his own hip. His erection was barely touching her entrance and that's when he pulled back from her mouth to look at her again.

 _'God,'_ He thought as he took her in. _'you're beautiful'_

He wanted to tell her but his voice wouldn't come. Instead, he held her gaze as he slowly entered her. He moaned "Ah" as she moaned "Oh" at the same time. He took his time and pushed in and out of her slowly, almost torturously. The whole time he held her gaze.

She felt just like he had remembered her feeling. She was soft and warm and she felt oh so good. He'd always remembered every single moment of their night together and now they were here again. Yes, this time it was more of a comfort thing but that didn't mean he couldn't take in every touch, every smell, every noise and commit them all to his memory. And he knew that this night would be burned into his memory until he died.

He bent down and kissed her again as he felt her inner walls begin to tighten around him. He was so close, but he wanted to make sure she was with him. He quickened his pace and rolled his hips slightly, causing her to whimper against his mouth and then she came. She trembled against him and that was all it took for him to follow her over the edge. He pushed into her as hard as he dared and then found his own realise.

He grunted against her lips as he rode out his first orgasm and her second. Then he collapsed against her and buried his face into the crook of her neck. He sighed shakily against her skin and briefly gripped her tighter.

He knew that at any moment he would have to move and let go of her, but for now, in this moment…he just wanted to hold her for a little bit longer…

 **To Be Continued…**


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter Twenty-Four**

When House opened his eyes the next morning he noticed two things. One, he was naked in bed with only a sheet barely covering his hips and legs. The second thing he noticed was that he was alone. He reached a hand out and stroked the vacant pillow beside him.

The memories of what had happened in that bed came flooding back to him. The way Cuddy had felt. The way she had tasted. The way she had smelt. It was all too much. He closed his eyes as if trying to contain the memory for just a little bit longer before the real world intervened like he knew it would.

It was then that he heard movement from the other side of the room. He opened his eyes in time to see Cuddy walking out of the bathroom. She was fully dressed, make-up perfectly on and she was brushing her hair. She paused when she saw House looking at her.

"M-morning," She said, casting her eyes down.

"Morning," House nodded slowly. He sat up, making sure that the sheet covered him completely. He wasn't a shy man when it came to sex and his body. Excluding his damaged thigh muscle, but the rest of him was well beyond average and he was proud of that. Usually, he wouldn't care if he was covered or not, but this was different. What had happened between them was about comfort. "Look, about last night—" He began.

"—It's fine, House." Cuddy breathed. "We should just…pretend it never happened…"

House looked at her for a moment, trying to read her but she refused to look at him. Her eyes looking down at the brush in her hand.

"Ok," He agreed slowly.

Cuddy looked back at him briefly before looking back down. She was hurt that he had agreed with her so quickly. A part of her had wanted him to tell her that he couldn't pretend and that it had meant something to him. But, she knew House better and she knew that to him what had happened last night was only due to comfort and need.

Cuddy nodded and then looked back at him. "Um, I'll go grab us some coffee. So you can, ah, get ready."

She then picked up her bag and quickly walked out of the room.

House moved to the edge of the bed and started rubbing his thigh. That familiar ache started to return and he looked around the room in search of his pants. He found them close to the bed and bent forward to pick them up. He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out his Vicodin bottle. He shook out two pills, tossed his head back and dry swallowed two pills.

He found his cane and used it to help him stand up from the bed. Then he made his way towards the bathroom.

Cuddy wanted to pretend that nothing had happened between them last night. That they hadn't just had sex for the first time in twenty years. He would, of course, honour her wishes but that didn't mean that he wasn't hurt by it. Not that he really understood what he wanted from last night, but he knew that it wasn't to just forget it.

He tried to push all thoughts of Cuddy out of his mind as he stepped into the shower. Which was harder to do than he thought.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House and Cuddy arrived back at the hospital the next day. They had spent the majority of their trip back in silence. Both leaving the other with their own thoughts.

Cuddy had, of course, made it to the hospital first and was trying to busy herself by throwing herself back into her work. She was standing at the nurses' station at the clinic when Wilson came over to her.

"Hey," He greeted her. "I didn't know you were back. How did it go?"

Cuddy took in a breath and shook her head. "It didn't."

"Oh." Wilson sighed. "I'm sorry, Cuddy. I had hoped you would have found something."

"Yeah," Cuddy nodded and smiled and him briefly. "Me too."

Wilson went to say something to her when he heard the distinct sound of a cane hitting the floor. He looked over and saw House walking into the hospital. He turned and waved to his friend, but House only glanced at him briefly before continuing his journey to the elevators.

Wilson frowned and turned back to Cuddy. 

"Is he ok?" He asked.

Cuddy shrugged and tried to look busy by reading a file in her hands.

"How would I know?" She asked.

Her response peeked Wilson's curiosity. "Well, since the two of you just took an overnight trip together," He began, lowering his voice so that those around them couldn't hear. "I was thinking you might have some insight."

Cuddy sighed and closed the file she was holding. "I don't know what to tell you, Wilson." She paused and turned to look at him. "Maybe his leg is hurting him."

"Maybe…" Wilson nodded.

He didn't buy it though. There was just something about the way that Cuddy became defensive that made Wilson think that there was more to it than just 'House's Leg'.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Wilson made his way to House's office just after lunch. He had wanted to talk to him before but House had been busy with a patient. Or, well, House had been busy overseeing the surgery of a patient.

House was sitting at his desk, seemingly deep in thought as he stared at his computer screen.

"Hey," Wilson announced as he walked towards House's desk. "How's it going?"

"If you are referring to my patient, I'm still waiting for him to wake up so we can run more tests," House replied, still looking at the screen.

"Actually, I was referring to you and Cuddy."

Wilson watched as House's eyes flicked slightly before he regained his composure.

"What about me and Cuddy?"

"Well, what happened in California?" Wilson asked, "You've been acting weirder than usual around Cuddy."

"I have a case-" House began to protest.

"-You're avoiding her."

House shrugged, "I avoid her all the time."

"Not like this you don't."

House rolled his eyes but Wilson ignored him and continued.

"What happened in California?" Wilson asked again.

"Nothing," House sighed. "I assumed that you already spoke to Cuddy. We didn't find our daughter. That's it. Not much else to say."

"Then why are you both acting so strange?" Wilson asked, folding his arms in annoyance. "You're avoiding her, and she's defensive. So I'll ask again – what happened?"

House looked over at Wilson, his stare hard. After a moment he slumped his shoulders. He knew that Wilson would not let this go, and if he didn't get answers from him, then he would go to Cuddy.

House looked down at his desk and mumbled, "We slept together."

"Yeah I know," Wilson sighed and shook his head. "And now you have a daughter that you're looking for"

House tilted his head down slightly and looked up at Wilson, holding his gaze and waiting for the other man to figure out what he had just said. It didn't take him long.

"Oh!" Wilson shouted as his eyes grew wide with realization. "Oh! Oh!"

"That's a step down from _'wow'_ you know," House said as he rolled his eyes half in annoyance.

"Sorry," Wilson blinked. "It's just, this is huge."

"It's really not."

"Um, of course, it is. Were you drunk? Was she? Who made the first move?"

"I'm not going to give you a blow by blow of what happened." House snapped, annoyed and angry.

Wilson put his hands out in front of him. "Right, sorry. But…what are you going to do now?"

House shrugged, "I'm going to wait to hear from Cameron about the state of my patient."

"About Cuddy?!" Wilson explained. His own annoyance coming through. "Have you talked to her?"

"There's nothing to talk about." House admitted. "as far as she's concerned it never happened."

"Oh," Wilson's face dropped. He was slightly disappointed. "Did she say that? Or did you?"

"She said she wants to pretend that it never happened. So that's what I'm doing."

Wilson slowly sat down in the chair opposite his best friend.

"Is that what you want?" He asked.

"It was just sex, for Christ sakes." House groaned. "It didn't mean anything."

"Are you sure about that?" Wilson asked, raising one eyebrow. He knew his friend and he knew that anything he did with, for or to Cuddy never meant nothing. "You two were together, what-twenty years ago. You have a kid together. Are you really saying you two having sex _again_ doesn't mean anything?"

House shook his head. "She doesn't want it to mean anything."

"You sure about that?"

"It's what she said."

"Yeah, because women _never_ say the opposite of what they mean." Wilson drawled out sarcastically.

"She meant it," House told him. "So why keep talking about it?"

"Maybe she just said that because she thought its what you wanted to hear." Wilson pointed out. "Avoid getting herself hurt."

"You are such a woman sometimes," House sighed. Then his pager beeped. House pulled it from his side and looked at it. "Patient's awake." He grabbed his cane and stood up quickly. "Got to go."

He quickly limped past Wilson and headed out of his office.

"You still didn't answer my question," Wilson shouted, turning in his chair to watch House leave. "What do you want?"

House ignored him and continued walking. Truth was…he didn't know what he wanted.

 **To Be Continued…**


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

A week later, things had gone back to 'normal' in a sense. House and Cuddy had not spoken about what had happened in California. Instead, the continued as if nothing had happened at all. They went about in their normal routines, with House avoiding clinic duty and asking for risky procedures, and Cuddy doing her best to reign him in.

Wilson still wanted to know what House really felt but he had stopped asking, much to House's relief.

It was Friday and the hospital was abuzz with excitement as there was going to be a Gala held at a fancy hotel in order to raise some funds for the hospital. Cuddy had requested that all the heads of departments attend. Which meant that she wanted House to be there. He usually avoided these events and he didn't plan on changing that fact any time soon.

House was sitting in his office, bouncing his large ball against the wall when Max walked in. She walked over to him and looked at him for a moment. She didn't seem fazed by the fact that he was ignoring her.

"Dr, Cuddy asked me to remind you that you need to be at the Gala tonight, no later than 7.30pm," She told him.

House ignored her and continued to bounce his ball.

"She also said that I should offer you 3 hours off your scheduled clinic time."

House paused and looked up at her. Her arms were folded as she looked down at him.

"But, I'm not going to do that." Max continued. "I don't think you should be bribed to go to an event that all the other doctors are going to."

"Not your choice though is it," House stated as he watched her curiously.

She shook her head. "No, doesn't mean I have to allow it."

House stood up and walked closer to her. "I'm pretty sure that you're just a glorified secretary, remember? I don't think you can or can't _allow_ anything."

Max nodded in agreement, not at all intimidated by House. "I am a glorified secretary, and as such, I have a lot of access to a lot of things. For example, I can go into the hospital's records and erase your name from the roster, so that it looks like you haven't done any clinic hours at all. Then, well you'd have to do them all over again."

House eyes grew wide in surprise at Max's thinking and at her threats.

Max smiled cockily and continued, "I could also change your bank details so that you pay stops going to you and ends up going somewhere else. And that's just the tip of the iceberg."

Max gave him one last triumphant smile before she turned on her heel and headed towards his door.

"So bribes you're against, but threats are ok?" House called out.

Max stopped and looked at him over her shoulder. "I'm threatening you, Dr House." She smiled sweetly. "I'm just telling you some things that I can do. So 7.30pm sharp. See you there."

With that, she left. House stared at the door for a moment, his mouth slightly agape in shock. Then he closed his mouth and smirked slightly. Looked like he had better find himself a suit to wear.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House arrived at the Gala at 7:45 pm. The event was already underway. There were a number of hospital staff as well as some people that House assumed were potential donors. There was music playing and at least three dozen people dancing. There was also table placed around the room where those who didn't want to dance had taken up seats. There were also several waiters and waitresses moving through the crowd with trays of small appetisers and trays of glasses of alcohol.

After doing a quick scan around the room, House noticed two things. The first was Wilson staring at him with a complete shocked expression on his face. Which made sense, seeing as how House had told his friend that he wasn't coming tonight. Not only did House show up, but he was also wearing a suit.

The second thing he noticed was Cuddy. She was standing at the other end of the room, surrounded by men and women all of whom were talking to her. Her dress…Oh god, did she look good in that dress. It was a deep purple, low v-neck with a slit up the left leg to her hip. He was used to her wearing low cut tops and blouses at work but seeing her in an evening dress was different. It was hotter. His thoughts started drifting back to when he had seen more of her skin than what she was exposing right now.

He shook his head violently, trying to get rid of those thoughts. He needed a drink. He needed lots of drinks.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House spent that majority of the night sitting at a table drinking. Occasionally he rubbed his thigh and made a pained expression. His leg wasn't really bothering him that much but pretending it was stopped people coming over to him and asking him to dance. He had spotted Cameron making her way over to him but she walked in a different direction when he grabbed his thigh.

Cuddy hadn't talked to all night. He wasn't sure if she was avoiding him or if she was actually busy chatting up all the potential donors for their money. He found that he was actually disappointed about the fact that she hadn't talked to him. Even more that she hadn't asked him to dance, even though he knew that she would expect him to say 'no'.

Wilson walked over to him and sat down in a chair opposite him. He looked tipsy and very happy. He was definitely enjoying himself a bit too much.

"Having fun?" Wilson asked with a smile.

"Not as much as you are," House stated. "If you don't slow down you'll end up being taken advantage of."

"I hope so," Wilson said dreamily. He paused and looked at House. Even in his foggy state who would see that House's attention was on Cuddy and not much else. "Cuddy looks good tonight, huh?" He asked.

"She always looks good," House muttered.

He kept watching her as she laughed at something someone said. Not her real deep laugh she had when she was really enjoying herself, but a small laugh all the same. Suddenly House decided that he'd had enough. He had arrived and he hadn't been rude to anyone, so surely if he slipped out now no one could hold it against him.

He grabbed his cane and stood up.

"Where are you going?" Wilson asked.

"Bathroom," House announced. He knew if he said he was going home that Wilson would try to stop him.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House started limping down the hallway, away from the party going on. He was about to head to the exit when a sound stopped him. He could hear music and not the pop-jazz fusion crap they were playing at the Gala. No, this was just music coming from a piano.

He paused and listened for a moment, trying to place the tune. Then he recognized it as Schumann's Kinderszenen. Not something he would have expected to hear in a hotel with a massive party happening three doors down. He made his way towards the sound, intrigued by it and curious to see who was playing it.

He approached the room where he was sure the music was coming from and opened the door. He found himself in an empty function room. It had tables set around with chairs turned upside down and resting on top. Then he spotted the piano at the side, and Max sitting there playing. She was wearing a simple, spaghetti strap yellow dress. She looked beautiful. Not in the same way that he thought Cuddy was beautiful…different, yet still beautiful.

He didn't know that Max could play the piano, or that she was this talented. He was actually pleasantly surprised…though he didn't know why.

"Either come closer or go away," Max said suddenly while she continued to play. "Just standing there is throwing me off. Plus it's kind of creepy."

House smirked before limping towards the piano, stopping a few steps away from the back of the instrument so he could face Max. He listened to her play for a few minutes before speaking.

"Not the kind of music I would have expected from you." He told her and watched as she suppressed her own smirk.

"You were thinking more along the lines of this?" She asked as she changed what she was playing and started playing 'heart and soul' instead. "Or maybe this?" She started playing 'chopsticks'.

House rolled his eyes, "Go back to playing the good stuff."

Max tilted her head to the side slightly, "Just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's not 'good stuff'" she told him, but she changed the tune she was playing back to something more classical.

"Shouldn't you be at the party?" She asked him after several moments. Her fingers still moving over the piano's keys as she played.

"Shouldn't you?" He asked back.

Max shrugged, "I'm taking a break from all the pervey eyes, lingering stares, and almost ass-grabbing from some of the potential donors."

House narrowed his eyes suddenly, almost in anger. "Which potential donors?" For some reason, it bothered him to know that she was getting harassed.

"Why? You gonna offer to defend my honour and beat them with your cane?" She asked, smiling sweetly at him. A little touched by his response.

"I might," He answered honestly. Then he shrugged when she didn't respond. "Isn't this where you tell me how women of the twenty-first century don't need men to fight for them? Or some other feministic bull."

"No, I'd actually love to see you take a swing at a few people with that thing, " She tilted her head towards his cane in his hand. "Or, let me have it so I could do it."

They looked at each other and shared a knowing smile.

"You don't seem like the kind of girl who would let people get away with that kind of behaviour." He said suddenly.

"Usually I'm not," Max admitted. "But, this night is important to the hospital, which means that its important to Dr Cuddy." She paused before closing her eyes briefly and shrugging one shoulder. "So I make sacrifices. One being that I hide in here for a bit instead of making a scene."

House nodded. He didn't fully understand Max, and he didn't think he ever would, but she did seem to have some sort of loyalty to Cuddy. More than just that of an employee to their employer.

They stayed in silence for a while, Max content to keep playing at House content to listen to her. After a while, House's leg began to feel numb and he knew that he needed to sit down. He made his way towards the front of the piano where Max was sitting.

"Move over," He demanded, pointing his cane at her.

She scoffed, "Get your own piano"

"Ah, cripple here" He gestured to his leg. "I need to sit down."

"You do know that there are like fifty chairs in this room right?"

House didn't say anything. Instead, he just looked at her and pouted. Max looked at him and then groaned as she rolled her eyes. She slid over to one side of the piano bench so that House could sit down on the other side.

"You know, I have a three-year-old cousin." Max began as she started playing another tune with the keys on her end. "She does the same thing when she doesn't get her own way. Congratulations, you're on par with a toddler."

"Yeah, but I still get to stay up later than she does. So I win."

Max laughed and shook her head. House smiled in spite of himself before he too started playing. He wasn't sure what they were playing but it sounded good as they played together.

House wasn't sure how long they had been sitting there playing, but it was Max who stopped first. She stood up and ran her hands down her dress to smooth it out.

"I should get back, I promised Dr Cuddy that I would help her out a bit."

She turned and started walking towards the main entrance. House placed his fingers back on the piano and continued playing. Then he stopped and turned to her, holding out his cane.

"Wanna borrow this?" He asked jokingly, though he was maybe five percent serious.

Max smirked and shook her head. "You keep it. You might need it. I hear Mr Kendal in there swings both ways. Or maybe Dr Wilson if he gets drunk enough."

"Wilson wishes," House scoffed playfully.

Max turned back around and laughed as she walked out of the room.

House started playing the piano again, a smile on his face.

 **To Be Continued…**


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

A few days later, Cameron was working in the clinic. She was almost at the end of her shift, she just had one more patient to see. She went to the nurse's station to grab the last patient's file when a young man walked over to her.

"Hey," The man grinned at her. "I didn't come here to get checked out, but if you're one of the doctors on duty I think I might be coming down with a cough."

The man wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. Cameron smiled slightly.

"Well, you'd um, you'd have to wait your turn," Cameron replied, a little flattered that someone so young and handsome was interested in her.

"Oh I don't mind," The man replied.

At the same time this little exchange was going on, Max was walking onto the floor after having just come out of the elevator. She began walking towards the clinic to drop off some files from Dr Cuddy when she noticed Cameron. Then she noticed the man that Cameron was talking too. Her eyes grew wide in shock.

The man looked up and caught her gaze. He smiled at her and she glared back. She pointed a finger towards her office and mouthed _'Now'_ before stomping off towards her office.

The man's smile dropped before he looked back at Cameron.

"Sorry, this has been fun," He told her suddenly. "But, I got to go. I might see you later."

"Oh, okay." Cameron nodded before she went back to looking at her patient's file.

The man made sure that Cameron wasn't watching him before he followed Max into her office.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Max walked into her office and carefully placed the files she had on her desk. Just as she did, the door opened and the man walked in. The man closed the door behind him and that's when Max swung around angrily.

"What the hell are you doing here!?" She hissed at him angrily. One hand smacking him on the chest.

The man shrugged, not fazed by her little smack. "I haven't heard from you in a while."

"So you decided to turn up? Without checking with me?"

"Well, you have gone into radio silence." He replied. "Plus, that freaked out phone call a few weeks ago—"

"-I'm sorry," Max snapped sarcastically. "I was having a moment."

He sighed, "Yeah, you've been having a lot of these moments." He shook his head before looking at her with worry. "And I wouldn't be a good big brother if I wasn't worried about you."

Max sighed and looked up at the ceiling slowly. "Leo…" She sighed.

"So…" Leo began as he took a step towards the inner office door. "This is her office huh? Your real mom?"

"Says it right on the door there doesn't it?" Max tilted her head to the words on the glass door. "And that doctor you were flirting with before, was Dr Cameron."

"Oh," Leo smiled broadly. "The one who called checking your references. Got to say, she doesn't seem like a ' _nosey stuck up princess'_ to me"

Max narrowed her eyes and glared at him. "You're just saying that 'cause you've got the hots for her."

Leo started to laugh slightly. He stopped after a moment and looked at her seriously.

"I still can't believe they don't know who you are," He told her as he looked at her with worry in his eyes again. "I mean, this seriously tops the list?"

"What are you talking about?" Max asked as she folded her arms across her chest in annoyance.

"The dumbest things you've ever done list," Leo replied. "The third dumbest thing was pulling the fire drill in year eight."

Max rolled her eyes but Leo ignored her and continued.

"Second, was slashing your ex-boyfriend's car tyres-"

"-If he had kept it in his pants I wouldn't have had to." Max snapped defensively.

"But number one," Leo continued, again ignoring her. "Stalking your biological parents instead of telling them who you are."

"I—" Max began and then paused. Her eyes going wide as she spotted House in the distance, heading their way. "Quick, get under the desk!" She hissed.

"Seriously?" Leo asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Now!" Max hissed as she grabbed his arm.

She managed to get him under her desk and away from view long enough to not raise any suspicions. She turned and leaned against her desk, trying to act as casual as she could.

House walked in and held the door opened with the tip of his cane. He looked over at Max, who offered him a weak smile.

"Where's Cuddy?" He asked, tilting his head towards her office.

"Oh, um…" Max bit her bottom lip slightly, "I think she's in a meeting?"

House narrowed his eyes and looked at her curiously. "You _think_? Shouldn't you know?"

"She is," Max said quickly, hoping to cover her mistake. "She's meeting with Dr Richardson. She should be back soon."

House nodded. "Have her page me when she gets back would you?"

"Yep" Agreed Max.

House looked at her one last time before he dropped his cane from the door and limped out. Max stayed where she was, not daring to move until she saw House get into the elevators on the other side of the clinic. Once the doors closed she let out the long breath she didn't know that she was holding. Then she turned and angrily thumbed the desk with her fist.

Leo poked his head out from under the desk with a smirk.

"You know, I'm having flashbacks to Jenny Carmen's house. She made me hide from her dad too." Leo said as he crawled out from under the desk and stood up straight. "Except, she made me hide under her bed. Not her desk. And the reason was a lot different than this."

Max had her arms folded again and was glaring at him once more.

"You can't be here." She hissed angrily. "If House or Cuddy see you, they'll recognize you from California and I'll be busted." She stopped and let out a small sigh. "Look, just go and wait for me in my room."

She grabbed her bag and searched for her keys. Then she roughly placed them into his hands.

"I'll be there when my shift ends."

"Maybe you—" Leo began to say.

"Oh shut up and go!" She snapped, pointing towards the door.

Leo put his hands up in defence. "Ok, ok. I'm going."

Max watched him leave and then rubbed her hands over her face, letting out a long groan.  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

That night, Max walked into her hotel room. She carried a plastic bag full of takeaway containers.

"Leo!" She called as she closed the door. "I have food."

Leo popped his head out of the bathroom and looked at her curiously.

"Is it safe?" He asked. "Are you still pissed at me for turning up?"

Max narrowed her eyes at him as she started dishing the food out onto plates.

"Ah, yes." She replied slowly. Then she let out a small sigh. "But it is good to see you too."

Leo smiled and walked out to join her.

They sat down and ate their meal in silence before Leo spoke once again.

"So, what have you found out?" He asked, taking another mouthful of his dinner.

"Well, from what I can figure out, it looks like House and Cuddy had a fling when they were younger." She replied. "But, I'm guessing it was a bit of a disaster."

"And?"

"Well, I think they still have feelings for each other," Max said thoughtfully. "I mean, there's just this vibe when they're together. Or when they talk about each other. So, they must have been a bit in love back then."

"Enough in love to have a baby together anyway," Leo said with a short thoughtful nod. "What else have you found out?"

Max shrugged one shoulder, "That's about it."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah."

"Wow." Leo shook his head in disbelief. "Ok, don't give up your day job to become a detective. You'd suck at it."

"I can't exactly go up to them and say _'Hey, I hear you had a baby twenty years ago and you gave her up for adoption. What's that about'?"_ Max sarcastically stated.

"Yeah, but for the time you've spent here you should have more," Leo stated seriously.

"I don't even know if they want me in their lives," Max said with a small shrug.

"They came looking for you," Leo stated. "Which means they must wanna know you."

"No, they want to find their daughter," Max stated.

"Yeah, which is you." Leo nodded, "So, what's the problem?"

"It's just…" Max began before sighing and looking down at her plate. "The longer I'm here, the longer I think maybe they wouldn't want to know _me_."

"I thought you said you were getting on with Dr House?" Leo asked her.

"Sometimes," She nodded in agreement. "It's like, one moment he's this complete jerk, and the next he's really cool."

"And what about Dr Cuddy?" Leo asked as he grabbed his drink. "I thought you said she was awesome."

"She is," Max replied fondly. Her eyes sparkled with wistfully. "In a lot of ways. I mean," She paused and sighed, "She's exactly the type of mom I'd wished I'd always had."

Leo looked down at the table in front of him and frowned deeply. Max saw and shook her head slightly.

She smiled a little and said, "Not that our mom was that bad."

Leo looked up at her once again and smiled back at her.

"She does love you." He said, referring to their mother. "Dad too."

Max sighed again, "I know." She leaned back in her chair and folded her arms over her chest lightly. "But the truth is, adopting me caused them to divorce."

"You don't know that. Mom and Dad were never meant to be together. Neither of us is ever going to change that."

"Leo, I've heard them fighting about me before. I know I had something to do with it." She told him, her tone slightly sadder than it had been.

"I don't think it's what you think." He replied thoughtfully. "I mean, if they didn't care about you then mom wouldn't keep harping at you about school. And dad wouldn't keep giving you money."

"He gives us money because it's easier than spending time with us," Max said with a slight roll of her eyes.

"Exactly!" Leo exclaimed. "Us. Both of us. Me, his son and you, his daughter."

Max couldn't help but smile slightly at her brother's cockiness. "Ok, maybe your slightly right."

"And anyway," Leo continued. "You're the lucky one in this scenario."

"How do you figure?"

"You've got your biological parents to fall back on." He told her with a broad grin. "And I'm sure they will want to know _you_. Unless you're worried because you really do think mom and dad's divorce is your fault."

Max groaned, "Please don't try to analyze me."

"I'm just saying, you shouldn't leave them in the dark. They're not mom and dad."

"Look," Max snapped. "I'll tell House and Cuddy when I'm ready."

"They're gonna find out eventually," Leo said firmly. "And when they do, they might be angry that you weren't up front with them from the start."

"Which is why I need to time this perfectly."

"I don't think there will ever be a perfect time-"

"I get it!" Max shouted frustrated. "You think I should tell them."

"I'm just worried about what this is doing to you." Leo looked at her, his gaze softened a bit with affection as he looked at his little sister.

"I can handle it." Max sighed.

She pushed her chair back and stood up before walking over to her bed and sitting down on it and crossing her legs. Leo also stood up from his chair and made his way to stand in front of her. He folded his arms over his chest as he looked down at her.

"So, you haven't been feeling stressed?" He asked her carefully. "Or disappointed? Or angry?"

Max turned to look at him, glaring at him slightly.

"We both know you can lose the plot when you let your emotions get the better of you." He told her.

There was a pause as Max held his gaze, then she sighed and bit her bottom lip slightly.

"Ok," She began to admit. "There may have been a small issue a few weeks back."

"Ha! I knew it!" Leo exclaimed in triumph. "I knew it as soon as I heard that message you left on my phone. What did you do?"

"Nothing!" Max defensively said before looking down and shrugging. "I may have…broken a few things…"

"Who's things, Max?"

"…Dr House's"

"You broke your father's things?"

Max nodded before she stood up and walked back over to the table. She grabbed their plates and took them to the sink. Leo followed her and continued with his lecture.

"This is the problem, Max." He sighed. "It's why I'm here. You overreact to situations, lose it and go crazy-"

"-I won't let it happen again." She interrupted him as she turned around to face him.

"I'm worried about you." He told her softly.

"I know. But, I can do this. I just…I need you to go."

"Why?" He asked, surprised. "I just got here."

"I know. But if I can't risk House or Cuddy seeing you. Please," She pleaded with him. "You need to go."

"Could I just stay one night, ok?"

"I don't know…"

"Look, one night. Then I'll leave and I won't go anywhere near the hospital."

Max sighed and closed her eyes briefly before she looked back at her brother and nodded slowly.

"One night." She agreed.

"Thanks. Besides we still have a lot of stuff to talk about." Leo paused and looked straight into her eyes before saying, "I really am worried about you little sis."

"I can look after myself." She told him.

"Yeah," He sighed. "That's what worries me."

 **To Be Continued…**


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

a few weeks later, Cuddy woke up one morning and even though she had slept all night, she found that she was extremely tired. She got out of bed and had a quick shower which helped refresh her a little but she still didn't feel completely fine. She wondered if she was coming down with a cold or some sort of bug. She did work at a hospital, so catching some sort of virus wasn't that uncommon.

After her shower, she dressed and made her way to the kitchen. She wasn't hungry but she still decided to make herself some coffee. The caffeine might be just what she needed to perk herself up so that she could deal with her day at the hospital. However, once the smell of the freshly made brew hit her nostrils she felt suddenly very nauseous. So much that she grabbed the entire pot of coffee and poured the whole thing down the sink.

With one hand she covered her mouth and with the other, she turned on the tap and let the water run until she could no longer smell the coffee in the air.

She turned the tap off and took a few deep breaths. She must have caught a virus from the hospital. That must be the reason why she was feeling so sick. And then her eyes grew why as she suddenly realised something.

"Oh no," She sighed.

 ** _**House MD**_**

That morning as Cuddy walked into the hospital she knew that she had to find House and talk to him before she did anything else and lost her nerve. She wasn't entirely sure what was happening, or even what she was going to say to him, but she owed him and she knew she needed to talk to him sooner rather than later.

She found him in his office with his team. They seemed to be discussing something and then she remembered that he had gotten a new case last night before she left to go home. She briefly wondered if maybe she should wait and talk to him when he had gotten a bit of rest.

She didn't get the chance to change her mind, however, as House had already spotted her standing in the doorway to his office.

"Dr Cuddy?" House's voice came through and broke her out of her apparent trance.

"Oh, um," Cuddy began, mentally shaking herself for getting so lost in her own thoughts. She pulled herself together and straightened her back. "Can I have a word with you?" She asked looking at House. "Privately." She added.

House looked at her, he could tell just by looking at her that something was going on. He gave her a quick nod before turning to his team.

"Ok, mommy and daddy need to have an adult conversation." House began, as he started to limp towards the door. "You kids do some quiet reading until I get back."

Then without waiting for a response, House limped out of his office and made his way to Cuddy's side.

"What is it?" House asked once he knew that they were out of earshot of his team.

"Not here." She said quickly. "Someone could—"

"-Ok," He nodded quickly before pointing towards Wilson's office. "In there. Wilson's doing rounds. He won't be back from another hour if not more."

Cuddy nodded and led the way towards Wilson's office.

She opened the door and breathed out in relief to see that Wilson really wasn't there. She walked into the room and only turned back around to House once she was sure that he had closed the door behind them.

"So," House began. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

Somehow he knew that this wasn't hospital related.

Cuddy looked down nervously and started wringing her hands together. "I…I haven't been feeling well this morning…"

"Good thing you're in a hospital then."

"No, I mean…" She paused and sighed before looking up to meet his slightly confused gaze. "I think I might be feeling sick because…I'm pregnant…"

"What?" House asked, eyes wide and voice cracking slightly.

"My cycle hasn't gone back to normal since, you know, I was trying to get pregnant before." She began to explain rather quickly, almost afraid of what would happen if she didn't keep talking and explaining herself to him. "And I haven't been on the pill, and I you and I didn't use a condom that night-"

"-I remember." He nodded, still in shock.

"I didn't mean for this…I mean, I didn't plan this—"

"—I know that Cuddy." House snapped, without meaning too. "I was there too. Nothing about it was planned."

Cuddy nodded and looked down at her hands once again. House looked her over for a moment. He felt strange. He knew that he was in shock and a part of him wanted to make a crude comment before leaving her standing there, but another part of him wanted to make sure that she was ok. Maybe it was because of the guilt he had over not being there for her the last time she was pregnant.

"Did you take a test?" He asked her softly.

She shook her head slowly, "Not yet." She admitted. "I guess I wanted to talk to you first."

Her own guilt about keeping him in the dark during her last pregnancy was causing her to not think as rationally as she should. She should have taken a test first before seeing him. So that she knew if she was pregnant or not.

"Sorry," She apologized. "I, I should have done the test before talking to you. It could be nothing."

"Or not." House sighed.

"I can go and get a test now…"

"Don't," House said suddenly and when Cuddy looked at him he continued. "We'll do a blood test. It's more accurate. Plus if you are pregnant, then a blood test will tell us your iron levels and other things."

Cuddy stopped playing with her hands and lightly bit her bottom lip before she nodded in agreement.

"Ok," House sighed. "I got to get back to my team. I'll meet you in the clinic in twenty minutes. Ok?"

"Kay…"

House looked down before turning towards the door. He opened it and took one step out before pausing and turning back to Cuddy.

"Thank you." He said suddenly. "For telling me this time."  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

House had been very distracted when he went back to his office. Of course, his team had picked up on it, especially Cameron. House had managed to deflect their curiosity with a quip about Cuddy's thong, and about how she wanted to jump him. He'd said it in his usual sarcastic tone and since his team were used to his snide jokes, they decided that nothing was happening.

Fifteen minutes after he had returned, he made an excuse and left once again. He didn't tell them where he was going, and they knew better than to ask. He made his way to the clinic and as he got there his pager went off. It was Cuddy telling him that she was in room two.

He quickly grabbed what he needed before he went into exam room two. He found Cuddy sitting on the bed in the middle of the room. Her legs folded at the ankles and her hands on either side of the bed. He could tell that she was deep in thought. He lightly closed the door as to not disturb her too much, but she jumped slightly anyway.

"Hey," He said as he walked over to her.

"Hi," She smiled weakly.

He smiled back awkwardly before making his way to stand next to her. He placed everything on the bed beside her.

"Ready?" He asked.

"It's just a blood test, House." She sighed in response.

House nodded and took her left wrist in his hand. He pulled her arm out towards him and looked at her perfectly creamy skin. She looked so smooth and….He blinked quickly. He had to stop thinking like that.

"Make a fist a few times." He ordered.

She did as she was told as House poured some disinfectant onto a cotton ball before dabbing it onto the joint of her arm. Then he got the needle ready.

"There's gonna be a little sting."

"I've had needles befo—OW!" She snapped when she felt the jab.

She had had needles before. Probably hundreds, but they never hurt like that before.

"Heightened sensitivity," House muttered. "Could be a symptom…or could be that you're turning into a wuss."

Cuddy glared at him. Then she looked down at the needle in her arm, the blood coming out of her arm and going into the vile. She suddenly felt ill again and quickly closed her eyes. House noticed before grabbing another cotton ball. He removed the needle and placed the cotton ball over the tiny hole in her arm.

He reached for her other arm, which she allowed him to do even with her eyes closed. He placed her other hand on the cotton ball and pressed her hand firmly.

"Hold that for a second," He muttered before he packed up the test.

He turned back to her and with one hand, he removed her own hand, and with the other, he placed a small Band-Aid on her needle mark. When he finally looked back at her, he saw that her eyes were still closed, her breathing shallow and her face slightly pale.

"Lay down." He ordered but his tone was gentle.

Cuddy nodded before she turned slightly and slowly laid back on the bed. She had never had a problem with blood before. She was a doctor, after all, blood came with the job description but for some reason, she couldn't stand the sight of her own blood right now.

"Queasiness to blood," House began as he looked at her. "Another symptom, or—"

"—Or I'm a big wuss. Yes, you've said."

House couldn't help but smile slightly at her attempt to banter with him and act normal. Nothing about what was happening was normal.

After a minute or two House spoke, "I'll rush these through the lab. Under a different name of course."

"Course," Cuddy repeated.

"I'll come and find you when I have the results. You should, ah, rest for a bit. Take it easy."

"House, I didn't have major surgery." She began to protest as she sat up slowly. "It was one blood test."

House instinctively reached out and helped her to sit up.

"A blood test that nearly made you pass out." He told her.

"I didn't—"

"Just take it easy. If you faint there's gonna be a billion new rumours around this place."

Cuddy chuckled slightly despite being a little annoyed as well. It felt weird that House was being so nice and… almost protective. But she wouldn't read too much into it. She wouldn't get her hopes up.

House let her go and grabbed his cane and everything else before he limped to the door.

"Don't leave your office." He told her as he turned to look at her over his shoulder. "I don't wanna have to go all over the hospital to find you when I get the results."

"It's a little weird," She told him as she carefully got down from the table. "That you'll know whether or not I am pregnant before I will."

House shrugged, "Well, since I didn't know at all the last time…Seems only fair."

"House…" Cuddy sighed. She looked down and House could see the guilt well up in her eyes again.

"I'm kidding, Cuddy," House said quickly. He mentally kicked himself for being so stupid. He had meant it as a joke but clearly, it still wasn't a joking matter. "I'll see you soon."

House left, leaving a very emotional Cuddy behind. Not that House, himself wasn't feeling a bit emotional about all of this, but he was House and he wouldn't let those feelings show.

A thousand thoughts were running through his head, but he knew there was no point in over thinking about anything until he got the results back.  
 **  
To Be Continued…**


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

House ran the blood test by himself, much to the annoyance of the ladies down at pathology. As he waited he tapped his cane repeatedly on the floor in a nervous action.

As he waited he didn't know what to think or what to feel. If Cuddy was pregnant with his child, again, then he'd have to step up and be there for her even if he didn't want to. He needed to especially after telling her he would have when she was pregnant before if she had told him. But, could he really be there for her if he didn't want to be? Would that then turn into resentment towards her and the baby? And what if she wasn't pregnant? Would she be upset? She had been trying to have a baby only a few months ago until all this stuff with their daughter happened. What If she still wanted a baby? Or what if she didn't and she especially didn't want to have his baby again.

All these thoughts and more were scrambling around in his head when he heard a small 'ding' sound. The sound was the indicator that the results were ready. House sighed and limped over to the printer to grab the results.

He held his breath as he read the results.

Twice in his life, he had slept with Lisa Cuddy, and twice in his life he had gotten her pregnant.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Cuddy was in her office, her head resting on her desk. She was starting to feel ill once more but she was sure if it was because she was pregnant or because she was driving herself crazy with worry. How long do these sorts of tests take again?

She heard her door opened and looked up quickly, hoping that it was House. Instead, she saw Max walking towards her.

"Hey, are you alright?" Max asked as she noticed the pale complexion of Cuddy's skin.

Cuddy sighed and nodded slightly. "I'm fine. I think I've just caught some sort of bug."

"You should go home," Max said concerned. "Rest a bit."

"I can't, I have a meeting with potential donors," Cuddy began. "I promised them a tour of the hospital."

"I can do that," Max offered. "It's not trouble and I'm sure I could probably get a few more dollars out of them."

"Are you sure?"

Max nodded and smiled slightly, "Yeah of course. But you should go home."

Cuddy let out a short sigh. She couldn't really go anywhere until she had spoken to House.

"No, no I'll just rest for a bit. It's probably something I ate," Cuddy explained. "If I don't feel better soon I will go home. Otherwise, I'll just find you later."

"Ok," Max nodded once more. There was something that Cuddy wasn't telling her but she didn't want to push her if she really was unwell. "Want me to grab you a-"

"-Please don't say coffee."

"I was gonna say ginger beer," Max said with a soft smile.

Cuddy smiled back.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House had been paged by his team when he had been heading towards Cuddy's office with the results of her test. Something had happened to his patient and they needed him. It, of course, didn't take him long to figure out the problem, but it had held him up from going straight to Cuddy's office.

Not that it was entirely a bad thing. It distracted him, if only for a brief time.

He walked into Cuddy's outer office and was relieved that Max wasn't there. When he continued into Cuddy's office he found her sitting on her sofa with her legs tucked up underneath her. She held a bottle of drink in her hands and was slowly drinking it through a straw.

"Ginger beer?" He asked, making her aware of his presence. He closed the door behind him and turned to close the blinds.

"Helps with nausea" She replied with a nod.

"Where's Max?"

"Showing Mr and Mrs Glendale around," Cuddy said. At House's curious look she added, "Potential donors. Max is showing them around since I'm…not well."

House slowly nodded before he limped towards the sofa and lowered himself down next to her. He could feel her stiffen slightly and knew that she wanted to know what the results where. He didn't make her wait and straight away showed her the results. Cuddy placed her ginger beer down on the floor and then she took the paper from him and read it over carefully. Then she re-read it several times just to be sure. As she sat there, House watched her, trying to figure out what she was thinking.

"Well…" House began, "You're not a wuss." He quipped, trying to make light of the situation.

Cuddy's eyes welled up with tears and House didn't know if they were happy tears, sad tears, angry tears… Her tears could mean anything right now.

"…I can't believe this." Cuddy finally sighed.

"Yeah," House agreed. He leaned back against her sofa and watched her out of the corner of his eye.

Cuddy bit her bottom lip slightly before turning slightly to look at House.

"How are you?" She asked slowly.

House tilted his head towards her slightly and raised one eyebrow. "Seriously?" He asked. "You're asking me? I'm not the one who just found out I have another living thing growing inside of me"

"But, it is partly your living thing too, House," Cuddy said, biting her lip once more. "You're allowed to have thoughts about this. You're allowed to have feelings."

"How are you?" He asked her suddenly, hoping to deflect her.

It didn't work and she looked at him almost pleading, "I asked you first. Are you ok?"

He sighed and looked up at the ceiling, "I don't know." He admitted softly.

"House…"

"I mean it, Cuddy." He said suddenly, though his voice was still soft. "I don't know what I think or what I feel." He paused and then waved a hand at her saying, "I really haven't processed this yet."

"I haven't either." She told him. "It's not like I knew that this was how my day was going to turn out when I woke up this morning."

"I know," House sighed. He paused and then muttered, "You're keeping it." It was a statement, not a question.

"Are you really asking me that?" Cuddy asked stunned. She was slightly angry and a little hurt. "I can't – I couldn't…" She trailed off, not able to even say the word abortion.

House looked down, suddenly feeling like the biggest ass in the entire world.

"I know you won't." He whispered just loud enough for her to hear him. He stood up slowly, not looking at her.

"House?"

"I just…" He sighed, still avoiding her gaze. "I need some time, to think."

House gripped his cane and limped towards the door. He needed to sort his own thoughts out before he said anything that he might regret later. Even if it was something he didn't mean.

He left without looking back at her. It was good that he didn't look back at her because as soon as he was gone, she placed her head in her hands and started to cry.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House went to find Wilson. He needed someone who could be a bit more rational about this. Someone who wasn't as close to it. Really, he just needed to talk to someone so that he wasn't alone with his thoughts, and Wilson was all he had right now.

He found Wilson in his office. He walked in just as Wilson was standing up from his chair.

"Need to talk," House announced.

"Sorry, can't" Wilson shot back as he grabbed his lab coat off the rack and started putting it on.

"It's important."

"You always say that, and it usually isn't" Wilson quipped back. He walked past House and towards the door. "I'm busy, House. I need to go-"

Wilson was one foot out the door when House spoke, "-Cuddy's pregnant"

Those two words completely floored Wilson. He turned to House with wide eyes.

"Ah, guess I can stay and talk." He said slowly.

Wilson closed his office door and made his way back over to his desk and sat down, still staring at House. House himself, remained standing and gripped his cane tightly.

"Is it yours?" Wilson asked suddenly.

House squinted his eyes, "No, that's why I'm here freaking out. Because it's not _mine_ " He snapped sarcastically. 

Wilson held a hand up defensively, "Ok, but you have to admit you probably would have a similar reaction if she was pregnant with someone else's kid."

House rolled his eyes before sitting down in a chair opposite his friend.

"So, it's your baby," Wilson stated. "This is…huge."

"You think?"

"How's Cuddy?"

House shrugged slightly, "In shock, I think. Maybe happy. I don't know."

"Don't you think you should, oh I don't know, go and talk to her about this?"

"We talked," House said with another dismissive shrug.

"And?" Wilson asked.

"I told her I needed time to think."

"Oh," Wilson sighed. "Do you know what you want to do?"

"Doesn't matter what I want. It's her body. She's gonna keep it."

"Well yeah," Wilson nodded. "But, I mean, do you want this baby? Are you gonna be there for it? For her?"

House looked down, deep in thought. "I don't know if I want it." He muttered softly. "I want her to want it."

"Hate to break it to you House, but that means you do want it," Wilson said as he sat back against his chair. He paused and his eyes grew wide as he realized something, "Are you worried that she won't want it? Because it's yours?"

House scoffed in annoyance. "She's Cuddy. She's had baby fever for a while. She only stopped because-"

"-Because you two have been busy looking for your other kid?" Wilson interrupted with a knowing smile. "You two are already parents together. Now you just get to do it again and be part of it all."

"Like a do-over?" House asked as he raised a quizzical eyebrow.

"Maybe." Wilson nodded. "If you wanna look at it that way. But, whatever you want, you should figure it out now and let her know. If you don't want to be part of this kid's life then tell her. If you do, well great. Just go talk to her."

"You're not helping." House frowned.

"I can't tell you what to do, or what you should feel House. I think you already know."

House stood up and limped towards the door.

"Oh, and House," Wilson called out. House turned back to him and saw a smile on his face. "Congratulations."

House groaned, shook his head and then walked out.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Max walked back into Cuddy's office three hours after she had left. She was surprised to see Cuddy still on her sofa. Cuddy rubbed her eyes and yawned. Max could tell that something was going on. Cuddy looked tired, and a little upset.

"Hey," Max said softly. "I figured you be home by now."

"I must have fallen asleep." Cuddy murmured "How did it go with the Glendale's?"

Max grinned proudly, "You'll be happy to know that they want to add another thirty thousand to their original donation."

"Really? Thanks, Max. I really appreciate it."

Max smiled for a moment. Then her smile fell as she walked over to sit next to Cuddy on the sofa.

"Are you ok?" Max asked.

"I've just… it's been a long day." Cuddy said with a sigh. "I just have a lot on my mind."

Max nodded slightly, "Is this something to do with the bug you have?"

Cuddy closed her eyes briefly and let out a short breath. She felt like she needed to talk to someone and right now Max was the closest thing to a friend she had. Actually, Cuddy would consider Max a friend. The two of them had become close, close enough that Cuddy felt she could trust her with this.

"I don't have a bug," Cuddy said slowly. "I just…I found out that I'm pregnant."

Max's face fell slightly but she covered herself before Cuddy noticed.

"Um, congratulations…I wasn't aware that you were, you know, seeing anyone."

"I'm not," Cuddy replied. "It wasn't…planned."

"Oh." Max paused. A thousand questions running through her head.

She wanted to ask Cuddy if she was going to keep this baby, and if so, then why didn't she keep her other child. But that would mean exposing herself and she wasn't ready to do that just yet.

"Are you alright though?" Max asked, despite everything she found that she was generally concerned about Cuddy.

"I think so." Cuddy nodded slowly. She turned slightly and rested an elbow on the top of the sofa before placing her hand on her head.

"Can I…Can I ask who the father is?" Max suddenly asked, then she quickly added. "I know it's not my business and you don't have to tell me if—"

"—No, it's ok," Cuddy said quickly. "I like talking to you, Max."

Max nodded. She enjoyed talking with Cuddy too. There was definitely a bond between them.

"It's actually House," Cuddy replied softly. It felt weird to say it out loud. "He's the father."

"Oh," Was all Max could say.

So Cuddy was pregnant with House's child once again. Max honestly didn't know how she felt about all of this. She wondered if they both wanted this baby? And then she wondered why they didn't want her? They'd given her up just so that could have another baby together twenty years later.

"Max?" Cuddy asked gently, bringing the young girl out of her own train of thought. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, sorry." Max quickly shook her head and tried to compose herself. "I'm just worried about you. That's all."

"Thank you," Cuddy said with a smile. "But, I'm sure it will be fine."

"Yeah," Max sighed.

They sat there for a few minutes, each one contemplating their own thoughts. It was Cuddy who finally broke the silence.

"I might go home. Get some rest."

"Might be a good idea." Max agreed. She watched as Cuddy slowly stood up from the sofa. "You know, I'm here. If you need anything."

 _'For my sibling'_ Max thought to herself.

Cuddy smiled and could feel the tears of appreciation start to well in her eyes. She didn't know what House was thinking, or what he was going to do, and because of that, she had felt very alone in all of this. It was nice knowing that she had someone to talk to. Someone to support her and be happy for her.

"Thank you, Max."

 ** _**House MD**_**

When House went to Cuddy's office to talk to her, he found that she wasn't there. He didn't need to ask anyone where she was as he knew that she had gone home for the day. Wilson was right, he needed to talk to her, so he left the hospital and drove his bike towards her home.

When he got there, he used his cane to lightly knock on her door. He felt nervous suddenly, which was not like him at all. Lately, Cuddy had been making him feel a lot of things that weren't like him. It was putting him off.

Cuddy opened the door, wearing sweatpants and a baggy shirt. She looked like she had just woken up. Her hair was in a messy ponytail and her face was still a little pale.

"House?" She asked, genuinely surprised to see him. She had expected him to take a bit longer to 'think'.

"Can I come in?" He asked.

She nodded and stepped aside, giving him room to walk past her. House limped past her and made his way towards her sofa. He sat down and waited for her to join him. She did but sat as far away from him as she could get.

He let out a low sigh before turning to look at her.

"So," He began. "I've been thinking—"

"-Yes, I gathered that." Cuddy nodded.

She was tense and House realised that she was expecting him to say something bad. He never realised how little she thought of him. How little she thought he cared. And that really bothered him. He wanted her to be able to depend on him, to be able to trust him.

"I think we should raise this kid together." He waved a hand casually towards her still flat stomach. "Co-parent, or whatever you wanna call it."

Cuddy looked at her, eyes wide in shock. "R-really? Are you sure? This is a big decision House."

"I figured that out, thanks." House mocked, rolling his eyes.

"I'm serious, House." She told him firmly. "I need to know that you really mean this because you can't just change your mind a few months from now because you decide that this really isn't what you want."

"You really think that little of me?" He asked a tinge of hurt in his eyes.

"It's not about that," Cuddy said defensively. "I think extremely highly of you. I always have, and I always will, but this is different."

"I said I want this. What else do you want me to say?"

"I want you to be honest with yourself. I want you to be one hundred percent sure that this is what you want." Cuddy paused and looked down slightly before she continued in a soft voice, "and I want to be sure that you're not doing this out of some miss placed guilt for the baby you didn't know about…"

House swallowed before letting out a long breath.

"Cuddy…." He began, causing her to look back at him again. "…You're pregnant and it's mine. This isn't about guilt, or because I think its what I _need_ to do. It's what I _want_ to do. Yeah last time I didn't know you were pregnant, and I can't go back and change that, but I told you that I would have been there for you. So let me be here for you now."

Tears started to pool in Cuddy's eyes. She really wanted to believe him but she was also afraid that what he was saying wasn't real. She didn't know if it was her hormones or her feelings for House that was making her so damn emotional. 

"You don't even like babies, House." She said weakly.

House shook his head. "I don't like other people's babies." He told her. "Our baby might be different. After all, it did get the top pick of the gene pool." He paused and smirked slightly, "I am, of course, talking about my genes here."

Cuddy laughed softly despite still feeling unsure. House smiled because he knew that a smiling Cuddy, meant a more relaxed Cuddy. And a more relaxed Cuddy meant that she wasn't so stressed and that she was starting to believe him.

"Ok?" He asked after a small pause between them.

Cuddy slowly nodded and bit her lower lip slightly. "Ok" She agreed.

House's mouth twitched ever so slightly into an almost smile. He didn't know if he was over the moon happy about all of this, but he did know that he wanted Cuddy to be happy. She deserved it, and deep down he knew that he would care for anything that he shared with Cuddy. Not that he would ever tell her that.

"So…" He began, looking her over. His eyes briefly stopping on her stomach before going back to her face. "Now what?"

"I guess I have some appointments to make." She replied, smiling softly.

"You wanna do that at the hospital?" He asked.

"No, I don't want everyone to know yet. I'll find a different hospital to go to for a while."

"So we're not telling anyone?"

Cuddy shook her head. "No."

"Oh," House looked down guiltily.

"What?" Cuddy asked and held her breath, expecting the worst.

House looked back at her and furrowed his brows together.

"I already told Wilson."

Cuddy laughed again, which House wasn't expecting.

"That's ok." She smiled. "I told Max."

House couldn't help but grin.  
 **  
To Be Continued...**


	29. Chapter 29

**Author's Note:** _Here is a quick little chapter. It's just a filler until the next chapter which will be Huddy based._ ****

 **Chapter Twenty-Nine**

Max was feeling overwhelmed by everything that she had found out. She needed to get it all off her chest before her emotions got the better of her once again.

She went back to her hotel and flopped down on her bed. She pulled her cell out and called her brother.

"Wha?" Came his groggy voice through the phone.

"She's pregnant." Max huffed.

"Who?" Leo asked in a more clearer voice. "Anna? No, no Amy?...wait what was her name? Abby?"

"I'm not talking about whichever latest bimbo you've picked up at a bar." Max groaned in annoyance. "I'm talking about Cuddy."

"What? Wait, Cuddy's pregnant?" Leo asked surprised.

"Yeah." Max snapped angrily but more angry at her brother for not catching on quicker.

"Oh, well…good for her."

"Leo," Max snapped. "Didn't you hear me? Cuddy's pregnant."

"I heard you. Why is it a big deal?" He asked. Then a thought occurred to him and he asked, "Is House the baby daddy?"

"Yes." 

"And that bothers you?"

"Of course it does!" Max snapped. "I mean, they gave me up and now they're having another baby. What am I supposed to think? What am I supposed to feel?"

"Max, are you having another one of your _'moments'_?" Leo asked seriously.

"I don't know," Max said with a sigh. "No. I just…I feel…hurt."

"Max, just because they are having a new baby doesn't mean that they are replacing you. Heck, they don't even know who you are."

"They don't know me because they gave me away." Max snapped. "But now they suddenly want another baby together? Why? Why wasn't I good enough to keep?"

"You don't know what happened back then. It was twenty years ago, Max."

"I know that…" Max let out a breath before she flopped back on her bed.

"Maybe it's time you came clean and talked to them. Maybe they can tell you what happened back then and why you were adopted."

"I can't tell them now."

"Yes, you can. Don't use this as a new excuse."

"No, I can't. What if they decide this new baby is more important? Or what if by telling them, Cuddy gets too stressed?"

"Are you worried about her?"

"Of course I'm worried about her. She's still my mother."

There was a pause before Leo finally spoke again, "Do you need me to come back down there?"

Max thought for a moment before she sighed. "No. No, I'm fine. Really. I just needed to vent."

"Are you sure?"

"I am," Max said with a nod even though Leo couldn't see her.

"So what are you going to do then?" Leo asked.

"Keep doing what I'm doing. Maybe try to get a little closer to Cuddy." She closed her eyes and continued, "I know you want me to tell them, but I'm still not ready. This doesn't change that."

"Ok," Leo sighed on the other end of the phone. "But please just call me if you need anything. And please be careful."

"I will. I promise."

"Oh, and Max," Leo said quickly. "Can you call mom? She keeps asking about you."

"You haven't told her what I'm doing have you?"

"Of course not. I'd never snitch on you to the parentals. You know that." Leo replied honestly. "She thinks your couch surfing with your random friends. But you should call her. You know mom, she worries."

"Yeah ok. I'll call her tomorrow."

"Good."

"And Leo, thanks." Max sighed.

"Anytime sis."

Max lowered her phone and ended the call. She felt a little bit better. She always felt better after talking to her big brother. He'd always been able to bring her back from her own thoughts and ground her back in reality.

She was angry that Cuddy and House were having another baby, but then it was twenty years after they'd had her. And Cuddy had said that it wasn't planned. Not that it made Max feel any better. She knew she was being silly and that she couldn't really compare herself to this new baby.

She also wanted to be there for Cuddy. She did care about her and actually wanted her to be ok and for this baby to be ok.

Max rolled over and even though it was still early, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.

 **To Be Continued** …


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter Thirty**

House walked into Cuddy's office, a patient's file in one hand and his cane in the other. At first, he couldn't see her and he was about to leave and go and find her when he heard a noise coming from her adjoining bathroom. He frowned because he knew that she was probably in there throwing up.

She was now coming into her tenth week of pregnancy and her morning sickness seemed to have gotten worse. She went from just feeling nauseous to actually needing to throw up a fair bit. It was a good thing that she had her own private bathroom, otherwise, it would be common knowledge by now that the dean of medicine was with child.

He made his way to her desk and turned to lean against is as he placed the file down and waited for her to come out of the bathroom. He heard the flushing sound of the toilet and then the sound of her tap being turned on.

So far, everything with the pregnancy had been going ok. Sure she had a crappy case of morning sickness, but other than that things were going ok. House was grateful for that, especially since she had admitted that her last pregnancy had been so difficult.

The bathroom door opened and out walked Cuddy. She was a little surprised to see House leaning on her desk but didn't say anything.

House could smell a hint of peppermint and knew that she had just brushed her teeth.

"If you're interested," Cuddy began, as she made her way around to her chair behind her desk. "I can no longer stand the smell of yogurt."

"I'll add it to the list," House said, as he turned around to face her.

Cuddy rolled her eyes slightly and chuffed. "Yeah."

"Coffee, cooked eggs, tuna," House held her gaze as he casually began listing off the things that made her sick. "Wilson's cologne, the burgers in the cafeteria, and yogurt."

"Oh," Cuddy breathed. She was actually surprised that he had been paying enough attention to know all that. It was a little weird that House was paying that much attention, even more weird that he seemed to do it because he cared.

House couldn't help but smile at her reaction. It was nice to know that he could still surprise her. It meant that he could still get the upper hand over her if he ever needed to.

Cuddy used her hand to flick some of her hair over her shoulder. House decided to take the gesture as an opportunity to look at her chest. Her breasts were definitely getting bigger. Now that was a part of her pregnancy that he could appreciate. Even if he had to appreciate it from afar.

"So, ah, did you want something?" Cuddy asked, trying to move on past their little moment.

He nodded before pushing the file towards her with the end of his cane before he stepped back and sat down in front her. Cuddy picked up the file and quickly read through it.

"Patient's twenty-two week pregnant and there's a tumor on the fetus' tailbone," House explained as he watched Cuddy's reaction. "She wants surgery."

"Ok, well if she wants the surgery then whats the problem?" Cuddy asked, still reading over the file.

The surgery that was needed was risky but it wasn't uncommon nowadays and Cuddy had confidence in her staff that they could pull it off.

"She wants the surgery." House began, "Her husband doesn't."

Cuddy looked up at him and frowned, "Husbands don't usually have veto power in their wives medical decisions."

"No," House agreed with a small nod.

"Unless he is her medical proxy?"

"Nope."

"Ok, well then he can't stop you from operating on his wife."

"But he can stop us from operating on his child."

Cuddy looked up at him in surprise. Her mouth opened slightly as she took in his words.

"Ah, well," She began "I-it's the mother's choice. It's her body"

"But it's his kid too," House said firmly. "Doesn't he get a say?"

Cuddy shook her head slightly, "Legally no?"

House's face tensed and Cuddy frowned.

"Does that bother you?" She asked him carefully.

"No." he lied.

Cuddy looked at him with a slightly sad look. She knew that it bothered him even if he couldn't say it. This case was probably bringing up a lot of issues for him.

"I can get in contact with the hospital's legal team." Cuddy offered after a minute. "See if there's any way we could do the surgery."

"Thank you." House nodded.

He stood up and grabbed his cane. He took a step and then turned back as he remembered something. He reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out a silver chain with a small glass vile attached to it.

Leaning over her desk, he held the vile out to Cuddy.

"Here." He said, waving it in front of her.

Cuddy frowned deeply and looked up at him. She slowly reached out and grabbed the vile from him.

"What's this?" She asked as she took the small lid off the vile. "Smelling salts?"

"Strawberry quick powder." He replied.

He was shifting nervously from one foot to the other, but Cuddy was too busy smelling the powder to notice.

"You keep buying strawberry flavored milk, and milkshakes from the cafeteria," He said with a shrug, trying to pass this exchange off as something that was unimportant. "But you never drink them. Mean's that you're buying them for their smell. Kind of a pregnancy type craving. That lets you enjoy the smell whenever without having to fork out money on drinks you end up throwing in the bin."

"House…." Cuddy was speechless. She wasn't use to this kind of gesture from House. Tears began to pull in her eyes and she bit her bottom lip. She didn't want to cry in front of him as she knew it would make him uncomfortable, so she held back. "Thank you."

"Yeah well," House sighed, avoiding her eyes. "I hated to think about all that food you were wasting."

"Right," Cuddy nodded and smiled. "You're all about the environment."

"Exactly," He said with a shrug.

Not wanting to stand around and have a conversation about his feelings, House quickly turned and started limping towards the door. Cuddy was too busy smelling her new present to be that bothered by his quick exit. It wasn't until he opened her door that she thought of something. 

"Why doesn't he want the operation?" She asked suddenly. "The husband I mean?"

House turned around to look at her once again and shook his head slightly. "He doesn't want to lose his wife." He told her in a serious tone. "No surgery and the baby will most likely die. Do the surgery and there's a chance his wife could die."

"Oh." Cuddy looked down, biting her bottom lip briefly before looking back up at House. "That's….That's a hard decision to make."

"Yeah," House agreed softly. He looked down at the floor for a moment before turning back to her. His expression hard and serious. "What would you want me to do? If it was you?" He asked her suddenly. "What would you want me to choose?"

Cuddy didn't even need to think about her answer, "I'd want you to choose our baby. Every time."

House slowly nodded, "Okay." He sighed and then left.

As she watched him go, Cuddy couldn't help but cry a little. Damn hormones. Through her tears, she smiled as she held her new gift, the gift he had given her. Such a small gesture but it spoke volumes. The next thirty weeks were going to be full of confusing and emotional moments with him.

Cuddy sighed and took another big sniff of her strawberry powder.

 **To Be Continued…**


	31. Chapter 31

**Author's Notes** _: I know I don't usually reply to reviews. Sorry about that, I just tend to forget. But I wanted to respond to one left by a guest. The review was "Lovely chapter. (but, seriously, Cuddy – WRONG answer: the baby needs a mother, and you can try again!)"_

 _I just wanted to say that her answer wasn't based on her worrying if she'd ever get pregnant again. Instead it's more mother's instincts. A mother (a parent for that matter) will give their life for their child no matter what. Your child is your life so while baby's need their mothers, a mother will always sacrifice herself for her child. Whether that child is a new born baby or a 40 year old adult._

 _Anyway, that's so much for all the reviews. Here is another little filler chapter.  
_ **  
Chapter Thirty-one**

Day's later, Cuddy walked out of one of the conference rooms, having just had a budget meeting with the board. She had managed to keep herself together during the one and a half hour talk. Her nauseousness was still pretty bad but her strawberry powder, that she now wore around her neck helped a lot.

She was still keeping her pregnancy a secret and didn't want to let anyone know until she was at least thirteen weeks into her pregnancy. As it was, the only people who knew were still herself, House, Wilson and Max.

As she walked down the corridor towards the elevator she heard someone call out to her. She turned and saw Wilson wave at her. She waved back and smiled then watched as Wilson came over to her.

"Hey" He greeted her with a smile. 

"Hi," She smiled back. "Can I help you with anything?"

"Oh no. I just wanted to see how you were doing?"

Cuddy smiled gratefully at him. Typical Wilson, wanting to check up on her. He really was a good friend.

They reached the elevator and Cuddy pressed the button.

"I'm fine, thank you." She told him with a smile.

"Right, well, um," Wilson began just as the elevator door opened. They both stepped into the empty elevator and when the doors closed behind them Wilson continued. "I just heard you were having some pretty bad morning sickness."

Cuddy folded her arms over her chest. "Did House tell you that?"

"Sort of," Wilson shrugged.

"Sort of?"

"He told me my cologne was making you sick. I put two and two together."

"I had noticed that you don't wear the same one anymore, Thanks." Cuddy smiled and touched his arm gently. "Did House ask you to stop wearing it?"

"No," Wilson began with a sigh. "More like he threatened me until I stopped."

"What?" Cuddy asked, just as the doors opened up.

Wilson shrugged and walked out. Surely House acting out and threatening people to get his way instead of asking them was not something that was all that shocking.

Cuddy followed him and the two of them made their way into her office. Their conversation paused until they had privacy so that no one around them accidentally heard them talking about the pregnancy.

"So," Cuddy began once they were in her office. "House actually threatened you to stop wearing your cologne?" She asked in disbelief.

"Yeah," Wilson nodded. "Told me it was making you sick. Then said if I didn't stop wearing it that he would trip me with his cane. I thought he was kidding, cause you never said anything. Then the next day he tripped me."

"What? Oh, Wilson, I'm sorry." Cuddy apologised with a mixture of shock, anger and something else….maybe a little bit of gratefulness that House was protecting her in his own way. "He actually tripped you?"

"It's not like it's the first time," Wilson confessed offhandedly. "At least this time he had a good reason..."

"He could have asked you without hurting you," Cuddy said with a frown.

"He's just adjusting to this whole ' _expectant father'_ thing." Wilson sighed as he sat down in the chair in front of Cuddy's desk. "And he's never done emotions well. Acting out like that is just his way."

"I'm not sure…" Cuddy mumbled as she sat in her chair. "He's been…different lately. Kinder. It's almost scary."

"What do you mean? I heard you had to chase him up a few days ago because he skipped clinic duty… again."

"Oh he's still being a massive pain in the ass, you know where the hospital is concerned, but…"

"But what?"

Cuddy sighed and held the vile around her neck. "He's just been very, I don't know…tentative towards me. He's keeping track of what smells make me sick. And he got me this," She said and gestured to her vile of strawberry powder.

"Well, didn't he say he wanted to be part of the pregnancy?" Wilson asked thoughtfully.

"Yeah…But I thought he meant being there at the ultrasounds and knowing the baby's gender and due date. Maybe even have a suggestion on a name. I didn't think he'd care about _me_ though."

Wilson gaped at her for a moment, making her feel a little uncomfortable.

"You're kidding right?" He asked, looking at her like she had grown another head.

"What?"

"This is House we're talking about. And it's you. Honestly are you really that shocked?"

"Wilson, I don't –" Cuddy began.

"—Of course House is acting like that. He's being all protective because he cares about you. About both of you." He paused and looked down at her still flat stomach. "He just won't admit it, but trust me. He does."

Cuddy sighed and looked down shaking her head. She wanted to believe Wilson. To think that House really did care about her but she knew it was only because she was pregnant with his child and nothing else.

"He's just trying to be here for the baby, in his own House way."

"No, he's trying to be here for you," Wilson said firmly. "Look, I'm his best friend so I know what he looks like when he cares about someone. So believe me, he cares about you, Cuddy. I think he was disappointed that nothing happened between you two after California."

"Did he say that?" Cuddy asked in complete shock.

"Well no," Wilson admitted. "But it's obvious."

"Then why doesn't he say anything?" She asked.

"Why don't you say anything?" Wilson asked with a knowing smirk. "Honestly you two are just as stubborn as each other." 

**_**House MD**_**

Max was on her lunch break and was on top of the hospital's roof. She sat crossed-legged against the concrete barrier preventing people from falling off the side. In her hand, she held her sketchbook and was lazily drawing pictures in it. The same pictures that she always drew it in.

When she heard footsteps suddenly, she quickly closed her book and looked up to see House walking towards her. He seemed surprised to see her.

"This is my hiding spot." He said, with a hint of a smirk.

Max raised one eyebrow and said, "I don't see your name anywhere." Then she grinned and grabbed her pencil. "Oh, but look!" She exclaimed as she wrote 'Max's spot' in large letters next to her.

House's smirk grew slightly, "Bit childish don't you think?"

"Lesson's on maturity from you Dr House?" Max asked sarcastically as she stood up. Clutching her sketch pad to her chest. "Should I feel flattered or scared?"

"Both."

Max laughed slightly and shook her head.

"What are you doing up here?" House asked suddenly. "Shouldn't you be done helping Cuddy so she isn't so stressed?"

Max smiled softly as she caught the note of concern in his voice. He was worried about Cuddy and had been ever since he'd found out about her pregnancy. A part of Max was pleased to see this side of House, but another part of her was upset because seeing this side of House with a pregnant Cuddy, only made her think about what could have been if they had kept her.

"I've done two days worth of work just this morning," Max replied. "Cuddy could potentially go home right now if she wanted to. There's really not much for her to do. But…"

"…But she won't" House finished with a knowing nod.

Max looked away for a moment and bit her bottom lip slightly before turning back to House.

"You really care? About the baby don't you?" She asked sincerely.

House shrugged and looked down, nervously shifting from one foot to the other.

"I'm a jerk." He said softly, "But I'm not that much of a jerk. Of course, I care about my kid."

Max felt tears start to enter her eyes. She blinked quickly, not wanting House to see her tears.

"I-I have to go." She said suddenly.

Before House could say anything, Max had walked past him and was almost running back down the stairs. Leaving House looking slightly confused.

Max had to pull herself together or she was going to blow everything.

 **To Be Continued…**


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter Thirty-two**

Cuddy sat in her office, feeling slightly unwell once more. She was now fifteen weeks pregnant. Her belly had grown into a slight little bump that was not noticeable under her tops and jackets. She still wasn't ready to tell everyone yet and thankfully she was sure that no one had figured it out.

House, for his part, had gone out of his way to act like his regular ass-hooded self when they were out in public. Making crude comments about her chest and pointing out that she wasn't a 'real doctor'. As well as acting childish and avoiding clinic duty. Yet when they were alone, he was different. He was kind, in his own House way. He always asked how she was and was generally interested in her answers. He had been like this for a few weeks now and while Cuddy liked this side of House, she was also a little nervous by it all.

Cuddy started rubbing her temples slowly as she was getting a headache, most likely due to stress instead of it being a pregnancy symptom. She wasn't stressed about the hospital, at least no more than usual. No, her stress was due to House informing her a day ago that he had another lead on their daughter.

It had been….well fifteen weeks since their last lead. Since that had turned into a big waste of time, Cuddy was a little reluctant to get excited about this new lead. Even so, she couldn't help but wonder what if it did lead to their daughter, and then she would feel bad for letting herself get her hopes up. The whole thing was making her sick and stressing her out, which she knew wasn't a good thing.

When she heard her office door open she quickly sat up and lowered her hands. She wasn't at all surprised to see House limping towards her. She hoped that he hadn't just seen her rubbing her temples. She didn't want to worry him over something as simple as a headache, especially as she knew he had a case he needed to focus on instead.

"Hey" House looked at her, tilting his head slightly.

Cuddy tried to act normal and she wasn't sure if he had seen her or not.

"Hi." She smiled, hoping that she was convincing enough that he wouldn't ask questions. "Any news?"

House sighed and shook his head. He made his way and sat down in one of the chairs in front of her and then placed his cane across his lap.

"Another dead end." He told her, trying to hide his own disappointment.

He saw he face fall and her bottom lip tremble slightly. He felt like such a dick for getting her hopes up again only to shatter them now. A part of him hadn't wanted to tell her but he knew that she would be upset with him if he didn't and she found out. And he knew that she would most likely find out about it later.

Cuddy blinked quickly, trying to stop the tears from entering her eyes. Her headache was back three times worse than it had been minutes ago. She couldn't hide it from House anymore, even if she tried.

"Cuddy?" He asked softly. He leaned forward in his chair and looked at her intently. He wanted to go over and hold her. Let her know that it would be ok and that they would keep trying. Instead, he stayed where he was. He wasn't sure if they had that kind of relationship where she would accept physical acts of affection on his part. He didn't want to scare her or even confuse her so he remained seated.

"I'm fine, House." She lied, to herself as much as to him. She covered her mouth with her hand briefly before shaking her head slightly. "You'd think by now that I'd be used to this." She sighed, "Use to this disappointment."

"We'll keep trying, Cuddy," House promised.

"I know. I just… I wish it wasn't this hard, you know?"

House looked down and nodded. "Yeah. I know."

He wanted to say more, to reassure her but words in this type of situation were not his strong point.

"I—" He began but was interrupted when his cell started to ring. He inwardly groaned and grabbed his phone from his pocket. "What?" he snapped.

Cuddy watched as he listened to the other person for a moment. A moment later, he hung up and placed his cell back in his pocket.

"Your patient?" Cuddy asked softly.

"Yeah," House nodded. "They're not responding to treatment. Now they're getting worse."

"You should go."

"No," House began to protest as he slowly stood up. "My team can handle it-"

"-House, I'm fine really," Cuddy reassured him quickly. "Go do your job. Please."

House looked at her intently, trying to gauze if she really was ok. He knew that this whole thing was stressing her out and that wasn't good for her. He wanted to be there for her but he knew that if she didn't want him to be that he couldn't force her. Eventually, he let her win and nodded his head slowly.

"Ok, but get Max here if you aren't _'fine'_." He told her. He meant for it to be a suggestion but it came out more like a demand.

Cuddy nodded. House took a step towards her but she held a hand up and stopped her.

"Really, House. You need to go."

House sighed before turning on his heel and slowly making his way out of her office.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Cuddy had tried to busy herself with work after House had left but she found that she wasn't able to focus on anything. Her headache was worse and she had started feeling faint as well as a slight pinching feeling in her lower abdomen. She was stressed and she knew it but she couldn't stop thinking about her disappointment that they still hadn't found their daughter.

She wanted to cry. She wanted to break down but she knew she couldn't do that. She was at work and she needed to pull herself together. She just didn't know how.

She placed her head in her hands and let out an inaudible sob before closing her eyes tightly as she placed a hand on her stomach.

She needed to see House. As much as she wanted to hide this from him, to not worry him, she couldn't deny that she needed him right now. Needed his comfort. Even if that made her seem weak in front of him. She didn't care.

She quickly wiped her eyes, making sure there were no tears and stood up.

She left her office and carefully made her way towards the elevator and then towards House's office.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House groaned loudly as he listened to his team make stupid suggestions on their current case. Actually the three of them, Chase, Cameron and Foreman were all making stupid comments today and their voices were drilling into his head like a constant headache.

Ok, so House knew that his current bad mood had nothing to do with them and everything to do with Cuddy and their daughter, but his team were the ones that were here in front of him so unfortunately for them, they were going to get the brunt of his bad mood.

The four of them were standing in his office in front of his whiteboard.

"It's not his kidneys," House drawled out as if he were explaining the difference between hot and cold to an infant. "Think of something else."

"I still think we should do the bone marrow—" Foreman began, folding his arms over his chest.

"Can't." House shook his head. "We need the ok from Cuddy."

"Then go and ask her," Chase suggested, fighting the urge to roll his eyes at his boss.

"Can't. She's busy" House snapped.

House knew that Chase was right and that he should go and ask Cuddy. He had gone to her before with much fewer demands before, but right now he didn't want to burden her if he could avoid it. 

House turned back to the whiteboard and read over the symptoms once again. He was so focused on the writing in front of him that he didn't notice Cuddy making her way down the hall towards them.

Chase turned and saw Cuddy first, "Well, she's here now. Let's just ask her."

House turned and saw Cuddy, he frowned because she did not look very well. He watched as she entered his office. She was pale and she looked like she was trembling ever so slightly.

House turned back to his team, ready to give them a reason to leave his office as soon as possible to give him and Cuddy some privacy. He opened his mouth but Cameron interrupted him. 

"Dr Cuddy, are you ok?" Cameron asked, her voice full of concern and her eyes wide. "Dr Cuddy!" Cameron shouted.

House's head whipped around fast as he saw what had made Cameron shout. There was a slight trail of blood running down Cuddy's legs then suddenly her eyes rolled back into her head and she fell, her head hitting the edge of his metal bookcase before she hit the ground….

 **To Be Continued…**


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter Thirty-three**

 _"_ _Dr Cuddy, are you ok?" Cameron asked, her voice full of concern and her eyes wide. "Dr Cuddy!" Cameron shouted._

 _House's head whipped around fast as he saw what had made Cameron shout. There was a slight trail of blood running down Cuddy's legs then suddenly her eyes rolled back into her head and she fell, her head hitting the edge of his metal bookcase before she hit the ground…._ ****

House wasn't sure what happened next. Time stopped and he was functioning only on instinct. He dropped his cane and made his way towards Cuddy, in a half run half limp movement.

Cameron, Chase and Foreman, who had been closer got to Cuddy first. Cameron was beside her checking the pulse in her neck. When House reached them he elbowed Cameron out of the way, causing the young doctor to stumble slightly.

House was so focused on Cuddy that he didn't see the looks of confusion and concern on his team's faces.

Cuddy was unconscious as House looked down and saw the very light trail of blood on her legs. She had a small cut on her forehead from where she had hit the bookcase. House placed one hand on her stomach and the other hand on her cheek.

House wasn't really sure what happened next. It was almost like he was having an out of body experience. He knew that he must have barked some orders at his team because at one point they scattered, most likely running to get help and whatever else he asked for.

House looked down at Cuddy and feared that she was losing this baby.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Shortly after Cuddy's fall, she was lying in a private room in the hospital with House by her side.

His team had pulled together which was good since House himself was not thinking as quickly as he normally would have had it been anyone else other than Cuddy on the floor.

Some nurses had shown up with a gurney and had stood back while House had lifted Cuddy from the floor before placing her on the gurney. His team had taken over, relaying to the nurses and other staff members what was going on.

He knew that his actions were going to fuel some pretty intense rumours, and that Cuddy's pregnancy was now no longer a secret, but he didn't care.

Now, he sat next to Cuddy and watched her as she slept. She looked peaceful, despite what was happening. He felt useless. All he had managed to do so far was stitch her head.

He looked up as the door opened and Wilson walked in. He was pushing an ultrasound machine. House had asked for one but wanted to examine Cuddy himself. Which is why he had sent his team to get him one.

"Cameron told me what happened," Wilson said softly, his eyes looking at Cuddy with deep concern. "How is she?"

"The bleeding's stopped," House muttered, still looking down at Cuddy. 

Wilson looked over at House and saw his friend swallow a lump in his throat. Wilson felt bad for him. For both of them. If something terrible had happened, they didn't deserve it.

"Do you, ah, do you need any help with thi—" Wilson began.

House shook his head and limped towards the machine. He grabbed it and ignored Wilson as he moved the machine towards Cuddy's bedside. He continued to ignore Wilson in the hopes that his friend would take the hint and leave him alone. Thankfully Wilson understood that House needed to be alone right now and he turned and left. 

House didn't know what he was about to see and he didn't know how he was going to react, and he didn't want anyone to see him if his worst fears had happened.

He pulled the blankets down to Cuddy's legs and lifted her shirt up to her chest. He grabbed the gel and squirted it on her stomach. As he worked he couldn't help but be nervous and anxious.

Until now, he hadn't even realized how much he had wanted this baby. At first, he had just wanted to be there for Cuddy, to show her that he would have been there before with her last pregnancy. He knew that eventually there would be a baby and that he would most likely bond with it during the first few months of its life. But he never knew that he could bond with it while it was still inside Cuddy. To him, they were fetuses. Nothing more. Not anymore. This was his baby. It was different.

House turned the machine on and stared and studied the monitor in front of him while he moved the wand across Cuddy's stomach. He had never looked at something with such intensity before in his life. His breath caught in his throat.

"Come on… Come on…." He muttered over and over again. "…please…come on…"

 **To Be Continued…**


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter Thirty-four**

When Cuddy woke up she was very confused. She blinked several times and took in her surroundings. She realized that she was propped up on a few pillows in a hospital bed in an empty room private room. She thought for a moment and tried to remember what had happened.

Then her lip began to tremble and tears started falling from her eyes as she remembered. She remembered going to House's office. She remembered feeling something running down her legs, and the last thing she remembered was hearing Cameron scream her name. She couldn't believe she had lost her baby. One hand moved and hovered over her stomach and then she started to sob. Her breath caught in her throat as she continued to sob. Her heartbreaking for the child she had lost.

She was crying so much that she didn't hear the toilet in the adjoining bathroom flush, nor did she notice the bathroom door open.

House walked out of the bathroom, his cane hooked over one arm as he shook water from his hands. When he saw Cuddy crying he suddenly stopped. Images of her crying on the floor after her mother's confession about their first baby popped into his head. And just like that day, seeing her like that broke his heart. 

House suddenly snapped back to the now as he realised why Cuddy was crying. As quickly as he could, he limped over to her. Putting an extra strain on his leg as he did so.

"Cuddy, hey, hey." He whispered, trying to be reassuring. "It's ok. I'm….here…"

He stood beside her and placed one hand on her shoulder. She had been asleep for over an hour, and House had stayed by her side the entire time. That was until the need to pee became too much and he had to duck into the bathroom. It figures she would wake up when he wasn't there. She probably thought he didn't care. 

"I-I'm so s-sorry, House." Cuddy sobbed.

"Cuddy-" House began 

"-I lost our baby." Cuddy continued, unable to look House in the eyes. "I'm so sorry"

House shook his head slightly as he placed a hand under her chin and tilted her face up to look at him.

"Cuddy," He whispered softly, looking directly into her eyes. "You didn't lose her. She's fine."

Cuddy's eyes grew wide and her mouth hung open in an 'O' shape. House couldn't help but smile slightly and he moved his hand from her chin and used it to push her hair behind her ear.

"Wh-what?" he heard her ask in a timid voice.

He nodded, "The baby – _our_ baby, is fine." He told her in a soft yet firm tone. Then his hand dropped from her face and he raised his cane and tilted the top of it towards her with a frown on his face. "You, on the other hand, are way too stressed."

Cuddy took in a shaky breath. "I know." She agreed. Guilt ever present in her tone. "I can't help it sometimes…"

House sighed and nodded, "I know."

He lowered his cane and sat down on the edge of the bed facing her. He tapped her legs slightly letting her know to move over to give him more room. Despite her state of shock and highly emotional state, Cuddy still managed to shift over to give him more space on her bed.

"But…but the baby's fine?" Cuddy asked, needing House to say it once again.

House's lips curled up ever so slightly. "She's completely fine. Healthy strong heartbeat. Good measurements for a fifteen-week old fetus." As he talked he couldn't help the note of pride that came into his voice. "She's strong. Just like her mother."

He looked at Cuddy who was grinning at him. Tears in her eyes but this time they were happy tears.

House frowned, realising that he may have just opened himself up emotionally and tried to go back to his self-centered, annoying self. "What?" He asked.

"You said _'she'_."

"Well, be weird if I called a girl _'he'_." House retorted rolling his eyes slightly, trying to act like he was annoyed. "Could call it a parasite if you want."

Cuddy swatted his shoulder but she was still smiling. She knew he was just acting and that he was really as happy as she was. And she was so happy that she didn't care if he wanted to pretend that he wasn't.

"We're having a girl," Cuddy said fondly as she placed one hand lovingly on her stomach.

"Oops." House sighed, covering his mouth dramatically before saying "Did you want to wait till you popped the kid out to find out? My bad." 

"I don't care." Cuddy murmured still smiling. "I'm just glad she's ok."

House nodded.

"I can't believe we're having another girl." Cuddy's face suddenly fell as the thought of their other daughter entered her mind. The one they still hadn't found. "House," 

House shook his head and looked down briefly before looking into her eyes.

"Cuddy, you are too stressed and it needs to stop, or you will end up having a miscarriage." He voice was gentle yet also stern at the same time. He wanted to make sure that she understood how serious this was. He didn't want to go through what he did that afternoon again.

"I'll try not to work so hard." Cuddy agreed.

"That's not the problem and you know it," House told her. He sighed deeply. He didn't want to say what he was about to but he knew that for the health of Cuddy and their unborn baby, he had too. "It's the searching for our other daughter. It's stressing you out."

"I know," She said before taking a shaking breath. She bit her bottom lip and tilted her head to one side slightly. "And I'm trying not to let it get to me. But I can't. It's such an emotional rollercoaster every time we get a lead and then…"

"Which is why…" House began. "I'm not going to look for her anymore. And neither are you."

"House!" Cuddy shouted, her eyes going wide in shock. She started to shake her head vigorously. "You can't just give up. Please!" She pleaded.

The desperation in her voice almost made him change his mind. Almost. But he knew that he had to do this. For her. For them, Cuddy and the baby.

"Cuddy-"

"She's our daughter. We need to find her. She matters."

"No!" House shouted, causing Cuddy to jump slightly. "No," He repeated more gently. "Right now, this baby matter's more." He tilted his head towards her stomach slightly. "You can't put her life at risk for someone who we may never find."

Cuddy squeezed her eyes closed tightly and moved one hand over her stomach protectively.

"We don't even know if she even knows that she's adopted." House continued. "And even if she did, we don't know that she'd want to know us at all."

Cuddy opened her eyes slowly and looked down at her stomach. She knew that House was right. He was normally right. Didn't mean that the decision didn't hurt.

"Ok," She whispered. She turned to look at House and saw the concern in his eyes. She knew he wasn't just saying these things to hurt her, or because he really wanted to stop searching for their daughter. She knew he was doing this because he wanted to protect her and the baby growing inside her. "We'll stop looking."

House nodded. "It's not forever, Cuddy. Just until this baby is born. Then we'll start again. I promise."

 ** _**House MD**_**

Max had walked out of the elevator's and into the clinic when she noticed that everyone seemed to be in a buzz about something. When she pulled someone aside and asked what was going on they told her that Dr Cuddy had collapsed and that there were now rumours going around that she was pregnant, and that due to Dr House's state of panic it was him who was the father.

Max heard someone say the word 'miscarry' and then she took off. She managed to find out what room Cuddy was in and then headed straight there.

Despite everything that was going on in her own head in regards to her parent's and this new baby, Max did not want anything to happen to Cuddy or the baby.

When she reached Cuddy's room, she saw her talking to House. He was beside her and they looked engrossed in each other and their conversation. Max felt weird about interrupting them, but she couldn't bring herself to move away from the door.

She stood, just behind the door so that she could still make out most of their conversation but couldn't be seen by them.

She heard House say the baby was fine but that Cuddy was too stressed and her stress would end up causing her to have a miscarriage. Then Max heard something that broke her heart. Silent tears started to flow from her cheeks as she heard House say that he was going to stop looking for their daughter. Stop looking for _her_.

When she heard Cuddy say _"ok"_ , she couldn't take it anymore.

Max turned and quickly wiped her eyes before quickly making her way down the corridor.

She couldn't do this anymore. She couldn't risk the chance that her being here could cause Cuddy to lose her baby. She wouldn't be able to live with the guilt if something happened to that baby and it was her fault.

As she entered the elevator and started to head down towards her office she had one thought in her mind.

She needed to leave the hospital, and she needed to leave House and Cuddy behind.  
 **  
To Be Continued…**


	35. Chapter 35

**Author's Notes:** _Hello everyone. I want to say a big thank you to everyone who is reading, reviewing or following this story. I really appreciate it. I just wanted to let you know that there may be a large pause between chapters as I will be pretty busy over the Christmas break. This means that I might not be able to post anything between the weekend before Christmas and halfway through January. After that, though I will be back._ ****

 **Chapter Thirty-five**

That afternoon Cuddy was getting out of bed and was fixing her hair. House had told her that she needed to stay and rest to which she had protested saying that she would rest a lot easier if she was at home. He had agreed because he knew that she was right. Not that he would tell her that.

"Hurry up," House said, tapping his cane repeatedly on the ground. "I'll drive you home."

Cuddy eyed him suspiciously, "Did you ride your bike here?"

"I—"

"—I am _not_ getting on the back of that thing." Cuddy protested, shaking her head quickly.

House rolled his eyes, "I took my car. And if I did ride the bike we would take your car, Cuddy. I'm not stupid."

"Oh," Cuddy blushed slightly. She should have known that he wouldn't have made her ride the bike, not after what had happened. "Sorry."

"It's fine. Just hurry up." House huffed in annoyance.

It was Cuddy's turn to roll her eyes. "A minute ago you wanted me to stay here. Now you can't get me to leave fast enough."

House didn't say anything, instead, he narrowed his eyes at her, almost in a glare but there was a very slight hint of playfulness to it. Cuddy mimicked the same look back to him before going back to fixing her hair and straightening her clothes.

When she wasn't looking, House smiled slightly. Despite everything that had happened, that was still going to happen, it was almost comforting that they could so easily go back to their regular banter. He knew that it was also a way for her to not think about their daughter. Their older daughter.

House's thoughts were interrupted by someone tapping on the door. He turned and frowned until he saw Wilson poke his head in.

"Am I right to come in?" Wilson asked, looking over at House.

House shrugged, "Not my hospital room."

"Yeah," Wilson drawled as he stepped into the room. "You just kept scaring everyone away."

Cuddy stood up straight and smiled at Wilson. "It's fine. I'm going home now anyway."

"To rest." House pointed out.

"To rest," Cuddy repeated.

Cuddy and Wilson shared a look and both shook their heads slightly. Wilson then walked over to Cuddy and smiled.

"I'm glad everything's ok." He told her as he bent down slightly to hug her.

After their little talk, House and Cuddy had sat in the room for a while as House had wanted Cuddy to rest for a bit. He had taken that time to text Wilson and let him know what was going on. As much as he didn't care if anyone else knew in that moment, he knew that if he didn't let someone know when the majority of the hospital's staff would be forcing their way into the room to check.

Wilson's text reply had been 'Thank god.'

"Thanks, Wilson," Cuddy said with a grin, welcoming the hug. "Me too."

Wilson pulled back but kept his hands on her arms.

"Did House tell you the other news?" Cuddy asked.

"Um, no." Wilson frowned. "He just said that you and the baby were ok."

Cuddy beamed suddenly, "The baby's a girl."

"That's great, Cuddy." Wilson smiled broadly. "Congratulations."

"Are you two gossiping hens finished yet?" House groaned. "I'd like to get out of here sometime today, and preferably before we get mobbed by all the nurses in the clinic."

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Wilson snapped, shooting a look over his shoulder to House. "Are we inconveniencing _you_."

"Yes actually." House shot back.

Wilson went to say something but then noticed that House's eyes were looking down in a glare. Wilson then noticed what House was looking at. Wilson was still holding onto Cuddy's arms and House was…jealous…protective maybe? Either way, Wilson dropped his arms to his sides quickly.

"Do we need to go right this second?" Cuddy asked, folding her arms over her chest. "Or am I allowed to go to the bathroom first?"

House groaned again as if her going to the bathroom was somehow such a big trouble for him. It wasn't. He just wanted to make sure that she didn't think he was getting too soft. He was pretty sure she saw right through him though.

Cuddy rolled her eyes before turning and heading into the bathroom. After she closed the door, Wilson turned around and walked over to House.

"Can I congratulate you too? Or will you just glare at me?"

"Try it and see."

Wilson put his hands up and sighed, "Ok, ok." He muttered and shook his head. "Everyone's talking about what happened."

"Yeah, I figured that." House sighed as he took his Vicodin bottle out of his pocket. He tipped two pills into his hand before tossing his head back and swallowing them.

"So, Cuddy's pregnancy is no longer a secret." Wilson continued. "And the majority theory is that you are the father."

House rolled his eyes.

"You can't blame people for jumping to that obvious conclusion," Wilson told him, a hint of amusement in his voice. "I mean you did run to Cuddy when she fell, and you pushed Cameron out of the way."

"I did not!"

"Cameron says you did. That and you haven't left Cuddy's side since it happened."

"So the cat's out of the bag." House sighed, shrugging his shoulders slightly.

"I think the cat's out of the bag and is now doing laps around the entire hospital," Wilson responded. "What are you going to do?"

"Nothing. I don't care what people say."

"I know you don't, but Cuddy does," Wilson said firmly. "This could out her reputation, not to mention her job on the line."

"Because she's having a baby with me? Nice."

Wilson shook his head slightly and added, "Because she's having a baby with one of her employees. One who I might add is well known for breaking several hospital policies and rules every other week."

House thought for a moment. Wilson was right, their…situation was bound to cause some sort of issue for Cuddy, and House would, of course, do what he could to help her.

"I'll deal with it later." House huffed quickly.

It was at that moment that Cuddy came out of the bathroom.

"Now are you ready to go?" He asked her.

"Yes." She said with a short nod.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Wilson asked.

Cuddy opened her mouth but House beat her to it.

"Find Max." He said. "Tell her to reschedule all of Cuddy's meetings for the next two weeks."

"House," Cuddy sighed and shook her head.

"Okay, one week." He said.

Cuddy folded her arms over her chest and shot him a look. House had to fight the urge to roll his eyes.

"Fine." He huffed. "For the next few days."

 ** _**House MD**_**

Max was in her office, furiously grabbing all of her personal things with one hand, while her other held her cell phone to her ear.

"Leo, I don't want to talk about it." She said into her phone.

She awkwardly carried her stuff in one arm as she tried to push open the door. It was then that Wilson also opened the door and the two of them collided. Max's stuff fell to the floor and her sketchbook slid across the floor and under the couch.

"S-sorry" Wilson said in a startled voice.

Max quickly hung the phone up and bent down to gather her things. She did not notice that her sketchbook was gone. Wilson also bent down to help. Together they got everything together and then both slowly stood up.

"Thanks," Max said nervously.

Wilson looked at her for a moment and thought she looked uncomfortable.

"Are you alright?" He asked. "If you're worried about Cuddy—"

"No, I…I know she's ok," Max said quickly.

"Ok." Wilson nodded and then he took in her arms full of her things. "So…why does it look like you are leaving?"

Max bit her bottom lip slightly before composing herself as much as she could. "This job just isn't working for me anymore."

"What?!" Wilson almost shouted. His eyes wide with shock and confusion. "But you-you love this job. You're so good at it. And I thought you really cared about Cuddy—"

"—I do!" Max interrupted loudly. She sighed and continued in a softer voice, "But she's been through a lot. She almost had a miscarriage today. She doesn't need me here making things more stressful for her."

"How would you being here make her –" Wilson began to ask. Now fully confused with the conversation he was having.

"—Look, just," Max sighed "Could you tell Cuddy that I'm sorry. There are numbers on my desk of people willing to take over the job as soon as she wants. And that I hope everything works out for her. She deserves it."

Wilson gaped at her as she pushed past him and walked out of the office. She took two steps before she stopped and turned back around. A hint of sadness and regret in her eyes.

"And could you…" She began before taking in a shaky breath. "Could you tell her that she is a great mom."

Max then turned and continued walking. Wilson watched as she walked out of the hospital. He frowned deeply. He didn't know much about Max or spent a lot of time with her, but he knew that she had some sort of bond with Cuddy. Plus, Cuddy seemed to be very fond of her. So for Max to just leave when Cuddy clearly needed her support the most was beyond bizarre.

Wilson shook his head and turned around to also leave the office but stopped when something caught his eyes. He turned around and saw the corner of a book sticking out from under the couch. He knew it must have been Max's from when she had dropped everything.

Slowly he walked over and got on his knees to pick it up. Curiosity got the better of him and he slowly opened the book.

"Wow!" He sighed, eyes wide in disbelief as he flicked through the pages.

The book was filled with sketches and drawing that Max had done over the last several months. But what was shocking was that every single drawing was of either House or Cuddy or House and Cuddy together.

 **To Be Continued…**


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter Thirty-six**

House had driven Cuddy home and he had to thank someone for the fact that they weren't bombarded by nurses and other doctors when they left the hospital. Though that could be because House made them go the back way through the ER. Still, he was sure that at least someone would have tried to talk to Cuddy, but no one did. Not that Cuddy herself would have minded but he did.

When he got to her house he hopped out of the car before her and was already opening her front door before she was even halfway down her front path. Cuddy eyes him with a mixture of annoyance and amusement as he used her spare key.

"I'm going to have to hide that again." She said as she walked under his arm that was holding the door for her.

House offered her a sly grin, "I'd just find it again."

She walked into her living room and House turned and followed her, limping heavily on his cane. When he had offered to take her home, he wasn't sure what his next move should be. He didn't know if she would want him to stay. Heck, he didn't know if he wanted to stay. He knew that she was ok now which meant that he could relax a little. After everything that had happened he could really you a strong drink.

"Thank you, House," Cuddy said suddenly.

House had been so caught up in his own thoughts, that he hadn't noticed Cuddy stop in the middle of the room and turn towards him.

"You've been…really great. With everything." Cuddy told him sincerely. "Thank you."

"You said that already." He quipped back.

Cuddy smiled slightly before taking a few steps towards him. She carefully stood on her toes and leaned up to give House a hug. House stiffened a moment. He felt awkward, not because of the hug but because he hadn't realized how much he wanted her closeness. This was the first time they had been this close since they'd actually conceived the baby. Slowly and carefully he wrapped his arms around her but didn't dare to pull her tighter. 

As soon as he felt her start to let go, he dropped his arms to his sides, stiffening back up again not wanting her to see the effect she had on him.

When she stepped back onto the flats of her feet, House could see tears starting to form in her eyes.

House sighed and shook his head.

"Cuddy," He began softly. "You have to stop thinking about it."

"I know." She said with a nod. "I will. Give me more than a few hours."

She didn't need him to clarify what _'it'_ was. She knew as well as he did that she was thinking about their older daughter and how they had agreed to stop looking for her.

"You should go rest." He said slowly, trying to change the subject. "Go to bed."

"I've just been in a hospital bed." Cuddy protested softly. "I don't want to go back to bed."

"Ok, so what do you want to do?"

Cuddy thought for a moment. The last few hours had been beyond hectic and now that everything was slowed down, she could stop and think about everything a bit more clearly.

"I want to have a shower." She said honestly. "And I want to eat something."

House noted the tinge of guilt in her voice and asked, "When was the last time you ate?"

"Probably…" She started to think, "Breakfast this morning."

House couldn't help but frown at her. "Go take a shower and I'll make you something."

"I don't know if I'm comfortable with you alone in my kitchen." She said lightly, as she almost smiled.

House realized that she was trying to start their usual banter again. It must be her way of coping and lightening her mood when things got too serious. If this is what she needed then he was happy to play along.

"If you prefer," He began with a sly smirk. "I could join you in the bathroom. You know, just to make sure you don't fall again."

Cuddy laughed slightly and turned to walk down her hall towards her bathroom. House took a few steps in her direction when he heard her yell out.

"Go to the kitchen!"

House smirked and spun on his good leg and limped into her kitchen.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Minutes later, House could hear the sound of water running in the bathroom while he busied himself with seeing what was in Cuddy's fridge. He frowned at the very limited and predictable selection when he heard someone knocking insistently on the front door.

House groaned and slammed the fridge door closed. He began limping towards the door and peered through the peephole when he got there. He groaned again when he was Wilson standing on the other side of the door.

House flung the door open quickly, causing Wilson to jump slightly.

"What?" House demanded.

"I tried calling you." Wilson explained, "You didn't answer. Neither did Cuddy."

"Phones must be off."

"House, this is important. I thought you should know –"

House interrupted him by holding his cane up in the air "-Is this anything to do with work?" He asked.

"Well, kind of—" Wilson began.

"-Bye Wilson." House snapped as he started to close the door.

Wilson quickly stepped into the doorway and blocked the door with his shoulder. He winced before breathing out "It's Max."

House let go of the door just as suddenly as he had grabbed it and frowned, "What about Max?"

Wilson stood up straight and pushed the door the rest of the way open.

"She just quit." He said.

"What?" House was visibly confused. "What do you mean she quit?" 

Wilson walked past House and into Cuddy's living room, House following close behind him.

"I don't know," Wilson said with a shrug. "I went to Cuddy's office to talk to her about canceling Cuddy's meetings like you asked."

House nodded quickly, silently telling Wilson to get to the point.

"She had all her stuff and said that the job wasn't working for her anymore."

"The hell!" House half shouted. Then he remembered Cuddy in the other end of the house and lowered his voice. "She loved that job."

"That's what I said!" Wilson exclaimed as he nodded his head.

"Did she say anything else?" House asked. 

There was a lot about Max that House still didn't know. She was a tough person to figure out, which was why House liked her so much. She kept him thinking. But, he knew that she liked her job and he knew that she really cared about Cuddy. There was a loyalty bond between the two women that House couldn't really understand but he knew it was there. So if Max quit then there must have been a significantly dramatic event that happened to her.

"I don't know," Wilson sighed. "She said she didn't want to make things more stressful for Cuddy."

"Yeah cause leaving her without an assistant is going to be great for her stress level." House snapped sarcastically.

"I know." Wilson agreed quickly. "But, I mean, she seemed really upset. Like she was about to cry. I don't know. I don't think she really wanted to go but she thought she had to."

Wilson paused and reached into his jacket. House watched as his friend pulled a book out from his jacket.

"She dropped this when she left," Wilson said. "It's full of-"

Suddenly House snatched the book from Wilson and started flipping through the pages. He frowned as he looked at the pages.

"-Of pictures of you and Cuddy." Wilson finished. "Only of the two of you. Almost looks like Max is obsessed with you two. I just can't figure out why."

House was only half listening by this point. He was too busy studying the drawings in the book. Max was a good artist, that was obvious, but what caught House's attention was how she was able to capture emotion in her drawings. There were pictures of both he and Cuddy smiling and they looked happy. Then there were pictures were Cuddy looked like she was about to cry. Wilson was right, the girl was clearly obsessed with them. The question was why?

"Should we tell Cuddy?" Wilson asked, bringing House out of his thoughts.

House looked up and opened his mouth but a voice from the hallway cut him off.

"Tell me what?" came Cuddy's voice.

House and Wilson turned to look at her, both looking slightly guilty. Cuddy folded her arms over her chest and eyed the two men in front of her suspiciously.

"Um, how are you?" Wilson asked.

"Don't even try," Cuddy warned sternly. She walked towards them, arms still crossed. "Tell me what, Wilson?" She repeated. Then she noticed the book in House's hands and frowned in confusion as she recognized the book straight away. "Why do you have Max's sketchbook?"

"You've seen this before?" Wilson asked surprised. "You know what's inside?"

"Well no," Cuddy said as she shook her head. "Max never let me see." She shrugged and added "And I didn't want to intrude. It seemed private."

Wilson and House shared a look which causes Cuddy to frown deeply.

"What?!" She demanded.

When neither man said anything Cuddy sighed and rolled her eyes before reaching out and snatching the book from House's hands.

"Cuddy…" House sighed as he tried to grab the book back. He didn't want her to get upset or stressed out again.

Cuddy stepped back out of his reach and started looking through the book. Her eyes grew wide in confusion and disbelief as she looked at each drawing.

"What is…I don't…" Cuddy muttered, lost for words.

"Cuddy, Max quit," Wilson told her suddenly.

House looked at Wilson and glared at him. Did his friend not understand that the goal was _not_ to upset Cuddy right now?

Cuddy looked up at Wilson, tears starting to pull in her eyes. She opened her mouth slightly and tried to find the words she needed.

"Did…did she say why?" Cuddy asked slowly.

Wilson shook his head, "She said she was sorry. And…"

"…And what?" House demanded.

Wilson shrugged, "She said to tell you," He began as he looked at Cuddy. "That you're a great mom."

Cuddy bit her bottom lip and looked down. House could see how upset she was getting. He wanted to comfort her, partly to make sure that she stayed calm after what had happened earlier that day. He couldn't help but worry about her and the baby.

Suddenly something that Wilson said stuck in House's mind. House narrowed his eyes and turned to his friend.

"Not will?" He asked suddenly.

Wilson frowned as did Cuddy as the two turned to look at House in confusion.

"What?" Wilson asked.

"You said Max said to tell Cuddy ' _you're a great mom'_ " House began, half talking to them but also half deep in thought. "Not tell Cuddy _'you will be a great mom'_."

"Ah, yeah. That's what she said." Wilson replied. Still frowning in confusion.

"House, what?..." Cuddy started to ask.

House's eyes grew wide as suddenly everything over the last few months with Max came right back to him in one big flash of memories. It was like he was having an epiphany the way he did when the solution to a case came to him at the eleventh hour.

"Shit!" He groaned in frustration.

"What?" Cuddy asked again.

House shook his head quickly. "I can't believe I didn't see it before. I'm so stupid!" He exclaimed, mostly to himself.

"House!" Cuddy yelled, causing him to look at her once again. "What are you talking about?"

"It's Max," House told her, looking right into her eyes. "She's our daughter."  
 **  
To Be Continued…**


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter Thirty-seven**

 _"_ _Shit!" He groaned in frustration._

 _"What?" Cuddy asked again._

 _House shook his head quickly. "I can't believe I didn't see it before. I'm so stupid!" He exclaimed, mostly to himself._

 _"House!" Cuddy yelled, causing him to look at her once again. "What are you talking about?"_

 _"It's Max," House told her, looking right into her eyes. "She's our daughter."_

"W-w-what?" Cuddy stuttered, looking at House in shock. "How can she…She didn't… we didn't…."

"I know." House said, "But she is. I know she is. I just can't believe I didn't see it before."

"House, just because she drew pictures of you doesn't mean she's your daughter." Said Wilson.

"She is," House said matter-of-factly. He looked up at Cuddy and then shook his head slightly. "I have to find Max."

He turned and started towards the door. His strides long and full of purpose.

"Wait!" Cuddy yelled as she ran towards him. She moved quickly until she planted herself right in front of him, blocking him from moving further. "I'm going with you." She told him firmly, almost an order.

"No. You're staying here and resting." He ordered back. His tone harsher than he had intended.

"She's my daughter too," Cuddy protested. "And unless you plan on tying me up, or having Wilson pin me down you can't stop me."

House narrowed his eyes and looked down at her but she didn't waver. Then he groaned and raised his eyes slightly.

"Fine!" He said loudly. "But let's go. Hopefully, we can catch her before she leaves her hotel."

Cuddy spun around and together her and House walked quickly out of the front door. The two of them were so focused that they both completely forgot about Wilson, who was now staring at them with a dumbfounded look on his face.

 ** _**House MD**_**

House drove Cuddy's car with so much purpose. His hands gripping the steering wheel tight, his knuckles turning white. It took everything in him to keep to the speed limit as he drove. The only reason he didn't speed was that he knew that with his luck, he would get pulled over and they didn't need the interruption.

Cuddy sat beside him, her hands wringing together as she chewed on her bottom lip nervously. Months and months of wanting to find their daughter and she was right in front of them the entire time. Cuddy would never forgive herself for not seeing it. For not seeing Max for who she really was. And if they didn't find her, then Cuddy didn't know what she would do.

"What if she's not there?" Cuddy asked, not daring to look over at House.

"She'll be there." He told her. Because he didn't want to think about what their next move would be if Max wasn't at her hotel.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Max was hastily shoving the remainder of her belongings into a backpack. A large duffle bag sat at the foot of her bed already full with most of her things. Not that there was much she needed to pack. A few clothes and some other personal things. She always liked to travel light and pretty much lived out of her backpack.

She picked up her phone and dialed a number before bringing the phone to her ear and zipping up her bag.

"Hello…yes I need to know when the next available flight to California is?" She asked into the phone. She paused as she mentally took in the information that was being given to her. "Okay. Thank you."

She lowered the phone and pressed the end call button. Then she placed her phone into her back pocket and grabbed her backpack. She flung one strap over her shoulder and then grabbed the duffel bag off the bed.

She sighed deeply and swallowed the lump in her throat. She was doing the right thing. She knew she was…it just felt so crappy. She slowly made her way to the door and bit her lower lip slightly before she opened it and walked out.

She readjusted the strap of her backpack so that it was sitting higher on her shoulder before she headed towards the main elevators.

Max leaned in and pressed the down arrow on the wall and then stood back up. She heard the 'ding' and the elevator doors started to open. Max closed her eyes briefly, getting herself ready to leave. When she opened her eyes however and the elevator doors fully opened, her eyes grew wide in shock and her mouth hung open a little.

Tears started to well in her eyes.

Standing in the elevator right in front of her stood her parents. Stood House and Cuddy.

"I…" Max started but her voice trailed off. The way they were looking at her, she knew that they had figured it out. They knew who she was.

Before any of them could say anything, and before Max could move, Cuddy took a few slow and cautious steps towards her. Then without saying anything, Cuddy reached out a hand and gently laid it on Max's cheek.

Max bit her bottom lip. She wanted to tell Cuddy how sorry she was. Sorry for lying. Sorry for causing her so much hurt and stress but the words wouldn't come.

As if Cuddy could read Max's mind she suddenly shook her head. Silently letting Max know that things were going to be ok. Cuddy slowly lowered her hand, placed it on Max's arm before pulling the young girl into a tight hug…

 **To Be Continued…**


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter Thirty-eight**

House, Cuddy, and Max were sitting at the small table in the kitchenette of Max's hotel room as she hadn't actually checked out yet the room was still hers. The three of them sat in awkward silence, none of them knew where to start or what to say.

House cast his eyes all over Max's form. Taking in every inch of her. The way she bit her bottom lip when she was nervous. The way she played with her hands. So much like Cuddy that it was even more frustrating that he hadn't figured out who she was before now.

"So…" Cuddy began and turned to look fully at Max. "…So you kept it a secret? Throughout all our conversations?"

Max nodded somberly. "And the longer I left it the harder it was to speak up." She paused and looked from Cuddy to House. "I was scared. That if I told you the truth…you'd hate me…"

Max trailed off and cast her eyes down. She didn't see Cuddy shake her head slowly.

"You're our daughter." Cuddy began and Max looked up at her. Max had to know that they could never hate her. Not ever. Cuddy smiled and continued, "You know, I remember the first day you walked into my office, and then we went for coffee and there was…There was something then, you know? I just…I felt that we had this connection."

"Me too," Max said truthfully as she nodded her head.

Since the first time she had met Cuddy, Max couldn't deny that there was some sort of bond between them. At the time she wondered if it was all in her mind. Like maybe there wasn't really a connection at least not on Cuddy's part. Turns out there always had been.

House watched the two women in front of him. Cuddy openly letting a few silent tears of happiness and relief roll down her face every now and then. And Max, who looked like she had the weight of the world literally lifted off her shoulders for the first time in ages. He knew that he was looking at the two most important people in his life. One, the mother of his children. His boss. His friend. The one person who could keep up with him and give him tastes of his own medicine. The one person who had been a constant in and out of his life for the last twenty years. The other, his daughter. _HIS_ daughter.

Even though Max was sitting right in front of them, House still couldn't quite believe that she was sitting here and that she was their daughter. He wouldn't admit it to them now, but House too had felt some sort of connection to Max. At the time he didn't think anything of it but now he knew that it was some sort of biological parental instincts that were buried deep inside him. It was why he was so focused on getting her a good job. Why he didn't like the idea of Chase asking her out. It was why he wanted to defend her honor at the gala. 

"How did we not know," He said suddenly, taking a second to realize that he had spoken his thought out loud.

Max looked at him and shrugged one shoulder slightly. "I wasn't honest."

"Yeah, but look at you," House told her, nodding at her. "I can see it. I can see it now. You look like Cuddy."

"She has your eyes," Cuddy added, smiling at House and then Max.

"So, how didn't I see it?" House asked. "It's so obvious."

"Maybe it's because I was hiding in plain sight. I know I should have said something before now. You must think I'm horrible." Max said honestly.

Max looked down with a guilty look on her face. Cuddy watched her and then reached out and placed a hand on her cheek and lifted her face up to look at her.

"Max…" Cuddy sighed. "My girl…I gave birth to you. No matter what, you and me, we're part of each other. "

Tears started to pull in Max's eyes and she shook her head in disbelief.

"Aren't you…" Max looked at Cuddy and bit her lip slightly. "…angry?"

Cuddy smiled warmly and lowered her hand. "No." She said simply.

Max turned and looked at House, who just shook his head to let her know that he felt the same as Cuddy.

He should be angry. After all, she had lied to them and yet he couldn't be mad at her. She definitely threw him a curve ball and he didn't know exactly how to deal with her. At least not in the same way he would deal with anyone else.

The three of them sat in silence for several moments. House took his time to study Max once again. Now that he knew who she was, he found it hard to stop looking at her, except when he would glance over at Cuddy to see her reaction. Max really did look like her mother. She had her mother's dark hair and most of her facial features. She absolutely had his eyes though. Almost like she was the best bits of both him and Cuddy mixed together.

"There were so many times where I wanted to say something to both of you." Max started to say as she looked from her mother and father. "But, I guess I didn't want to know the answer to certain questions—"

"-What questions?" House asked, interrupting her.

Max shrugged and tried to act like it wasn't important. "Like why you gave me up?"

"Oh Max," Cuddy sighed. She turned and shared a look with House before looking back at Max. "I did not give you up. I would never, never have given you up. I would never do that."

Max furrowed her brow in deep confusion. She looked at Cuddy for a moment and then looked at House.

House held his hands up, "Don't look at me." He said. "I didn't even know you existed until this year."

"House," Cuddy groaned and shot him a look.

"So… then how did I end up being adopted out?" Max asked them both. "How does that even happen?" 

Cuddy looked down almost guiltily even though it was her mother's mistake and not hers.

"After you were born my mother – your grandmother… She took you and organized the adoption." Cuddy took a deep breath trying to gather her thoughts. She was still very much hurt and betrayed by what her mother had done and she didn't think she would ever forgive her. She looked up at Max and continued. "The adoption wasn't legal so there was no paperwork. And she…she told me that you died."

"What!?" Max shouted. "How could she do that?"

"Good question," House said bitterly. He too was never going to forgive Arlene Cuddy for what she had done to his daughter.

"All this time I kept thinking it was something about me."

"No, no, no," Cuddy said quickly. "I'm just glad that you're here now. That we found you."

Max smiled slightly and then her smile turned into something a little cheeky. "Technically I found you guys."

The corners of House's lips curved up slightly. An expression of pride showing on his face.

"How did you find us?" He asked.

"Oh," Max looked at him and shrugged slightly. "When I turned eighteen I got sent this letter. It was from a doctor Handler."

"He was the doctor that delivered you," Cuddy told her.

"Yeah." Max nodded. "Well, I guess he was feeling guilty or something. I tried to track him down but he'd died. I'm guessing he wrote the letter on his deathbed or something but didn't want me to have it until I turned eighteen. Anyway, it pretty much explained who you guys were. There was also an unfinished birth certificate form someone had filled out. It had your names on it."

House turned to Cuddy with a look of surprise. "You were gonna put my name on her birth certificate?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Cuddy asked. "You are her father. Just because I didn't have the guts to tell you I was pregnant doesn't mean I was gonna deny her who her father was."

"Oh," House paused for a moment. He looked right into Cuddy's eyes with as much sincerity as he could muster. "Thanks."

"After that," Max continued. "It was pretty easy to track you guys down. After that, I just had to figure out what I wanted to do. Then over a year later, I decided I wanted to meet you. Sort of anyway."

"I can't believe you found us so easily," House told her. "Yet I've spent thousands of dollars on private investigators and got nowhere."

"Well…" Max said slowly and scrunched her nose up. "That's not entirely true."

"What?" Cuddy asked.

"You actually did find me. I mean you found my brother" Max explained. "When you went to California. You knocked on my parent's door and my brother answered."

House and Cuddy's eyes grew wide in surprise.

"That lying son of a bi—" House began.

"-House," Cuddy said, shooting him a warning look.

"No, it's ok. I've called my brother much worse." Max said with amusement in her voice.

"He was so convincing when he said he was an only child." Said House as he crossed his arms almost like he was sulking. And truthfully he kind of was. House prided himself on being able to read people. On being able to detect their bullshit and lies. Man, was he off his game all because of Max.

"He did it to protect me," Max explained. "I've known my whole life that I was adopted and my big brother's always looked out for me because of it. Sorry."

"Don't be," Cuddy said with a smile. "We can just forget about all that now."

"Ok." Max agreed with a smile. Then her smile faded slightly.

House watched her and a sudden thought occurred to him. "Max?" He asked, and waited for her to look at him before he continued. "Why were you leaving?"

Max looked down and let out a short breath. She swallowed before looking back up and the two of them. "I heard about you falling." She said to Cuddy. "Then the nurses were saying that you'd had a miscarriage –"

"—But I didn't!" Cuddy said in a soft yet strong voice. She hated the idea of Max thinking something had happened to her and being worried.

"I know. I um, I went to your hospital room and I heard the two of you talking…"

House suddenly felt a pang of guilt as he remembered his conversation with Cuddy while she was lying in her hospital bed.

"You heard us say that we didn't want to look for you anymore," House stated. "That was only a temporary thing until this baby is born." He said as he waved a hand towards Cuddy. "So that Cuddy wouldn't be so stressed anymore."

"Exactly," Max replied. "I thought that if I did tell you who I was then it would cause you too much stress." She said to Cuddy as tears formed in her eyes again. "You already had a close call with this pregnancy because of me. I couldn't be responsible for you losing that baby."

"Oh, no, no, no, Max." Cuddy sighed and placed a hand gently on Max's cheek once more. "What happened is _not_ your fault. Don't you ever think that. We're just glad that you're still here."

Max nodded her head slightly and allowed herself to take comfort in her mother's touch.

"I was just so scared." She whispered.

"Me too." Cuddy sighed. "Not just because of a fall. Because I thought I'd lost you…again."

Max bit her lip slightly and let out a sigh of relief. Cuddy also smiled and lowered her hand.

"So…" Max said after a long pause. She looked at House and Cuddy once more. "…Now what?"

 **To Be Continued…**


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter Thirty-nine**

House walked into his office after being absent for the last two days. This time he actually had a good excuse to miss work, and his sure his boss would be ok with it. Heck, his boss was the one who suggested the time off.

House had spent the last two days with Cuddy and Max. After they'd spoken with Max at her hotel, Cuddy had wanted to spend more time with her, to get to know her more. Cuddy herself still already had time off to rest after her fall. At first, House had thought that maybe Cuddy wanted to spend time with Max alone and so he mentioned that he would be at work. Then Cuddy had insisted that he spend the time with them. Which suited him fine.

So he and Cuddy spent time getting to know Max. Asking her questions about who she was and how her life was. What her adopted parents where like. They found out that she ended up going to a very well off family. That her parents were divorced and she had more to do with her mother than her father. They found out that Max believed that she was responsible for the divorce. That of course upset Cuddy. Actually, everything upset Cuddy or made her cry with happiness…but that could be due to her hormones.

There were so many more questions that House himself wanted to know. Like, why wasn't she in college? Did she want to be a doctor? What was her favourite band? Had she ever ridden a motorcycle? Some questions were important and some weren't but he still wanted to ask them.

They also answered a lot of questions that Max had for the two of them.

It had been some of the most emotional days in his life. Not that House would admit that. He was sure that Cuddy knew though. How could she not? He had met his daughter for the first time. He was a jerk but he wasn't that much of a jerk that meeting his own daughter wouldn't get some sort of response from him.

House knew that they still had a lot of things to talk about and that they weren't going to just suddenly become one big happy family or anything. But, he was happy. Happy that they'd finally found her and happy that she was ok and had grown up to be a smart, beautiful and independent young woman. She reminded him so much of Cuddy it was actually scary.

As House thought about the last two days, he sat down at his desk and leaned back in his chair. He picked up his big ball and began rolling it between his hands. He smirked to himself and chuckled slightly. Even though Max reminded him of Cuddy, Cuddy herself had told him that Max reminded her of him.

"House, where have you been?"

House looked up, still smirking slightly to see Wilson standing in front of his office door. Before he could respond Wilson kept talking.

"After you and Cuddy left I tried calling you for the past two days," Wilson said, his voice slightly angrier that he probably intended it to be. "And all I get is a text _'ok'_ , I mean what the hell, House!"

"What?" House asked in amusement. He always did like an angry and annoyed Wilson. It was fun.

"Don't ' _what'_ me House." Wilson snapped. "What happened with Max? Did you end up finding her? How's Cuddy? Did—"

"Whoa," House sat up and placed one hand out in front of him while the other placed his big ball on his desk. "Slow down chatty Kathy. One questions at a time." House thought for a moment before saying, "Actually, why didn't you go and ask Cuddy all this? I'm assuming she's been here since ridiculous o'clock."

Wilson rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Cuddy's been here since eight-thirty." He said as he walked forwards until he was right in front of House's desk. "Unlike some people who get to work just before ten."

"You mean me don't you?" House asked sarcastically.

"And I didn't want to bother Cuddy," Wilson continued. He paused and looked down briefly. "She just came back to work and I didn't want to risk you tripping me again if you thought I'd bothered her."

House nodded to himself slightly. Yes, if he found out that Wilson had hassled Cuddy and had stressed her in any way then he would most likely set his vengeance on him in some way. He was protective of Cuddy and their unborn baby. Not that he would admit that to anyone, not even Wilson. 

"Can I trip you with my cane if you bother me?" House asked seriously. "Because you really are annoying."

"House!" Wilson groaned. "Just tell me what happened. Or I will go and talk to Cuddy."

"Fine," House sighed. "We found Max."

"And?"

House shrugged, "She's our daughter."

"What?" Wilson almost yelled. His eyes huge in surprise. "Did she know this whole time that you and Cuddy were her parents?"

"She's known since she was eighteen. So… She's known for about two years."

"Wow." Wilson sighed and dropped into a chair in front of House.

House rolled his eyes again before pointing his cane at Wilson.

"Don't start that again." He warned.

"This is huge, House. I mean. Max is your daughter. That's… I don't even have words."

"You mean you can't think of anything as good as _'wow'_?" House asked.

"So, how's Cuddy?"

"She's happy."

"Are you happy?" Wilson asked carefully, eyeing his best friend to gauze his reaction. 

"I don't know." House half lied. He was happy, but whether he was as happy and as open to all this as Cuddy was, well he didn't know. "It's good that I don't have to look anymore."

"Hhmm." Wilson murmured in thought.

Wilson knew that there was more to House's thoughts and feelings than that, but he also knew that House wouldn't tell him more than that so he may as well just stop asking.

"So did Max say why she didn't say anything when she first got here?" Wilson asked after several moments of silence.

"She was worried some people wouldn't accept her," House replied.

"So instead she lied about her identity for months? Doesn't that, oh I don't know…piss you off a little?" Wilson asked his friend.

House gave a half shrug. "Everybody lies."

"True, but not about stuff like this."

"Of course they do." Said House. "I had a patient who lied to her husband about the true paternity of their child – well her child. People lie about all kinds of things. Usually because of a primal instinct to protect one's self."

"Ok. Ok." Wilson muttered and shook his head. "Are you getting a DNA test done?" He asked suddenly.

House frowned deeply, "Why would I do that?"

Wilson gaped at him. Was this even House he was talking too? "Um, so you can be sure that Max actually is your daughter." He replied as he eyed his friend suspiciously.

"I'm sure. I don't need a test." House replied

Wilson opened his mouth slightly and gaped at him.

"What?" House huffed in annoyance.

"You don't want a DNA test? A paternity test?" Wilson asked slowly. "Ok, who are you and what have you done with House? If this was anyone else you would tell them – no you would demand that they'd get a DNA test done. So why aren't you getting one?"

"I just said I don't need one," House said and narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Why? Because you're just going to take Max's word for it?"

"Yep," House quipped back as he stood from his chair and placed his cane on the ground.

Before Wilson could say anything else or ask "Why" one more time, House limped past him and out of his office.

 ** _**House MD**_**

Shortly after leaving Wilson in his office, House walked into Cuddy's office. Cuddy was sitting at her desk, pen in hand as she read over some files. Pausing every now and then to write something down.

When Cuddy heard him come in she looked up at him and smiled broadly. Almost beaming.

"Before you say anything," She began. "I'm not doing anything too stressful."

"Wasn't gonna say anything." He said, slightly pleased by her good mood. Which she had been in ever since they'd found Max. "Besides," He added with a shrug. "You're the boss. It's not my business what you do or how stressful your work is." 

Cuddy laughed slightly and place her chin in her hand as she rested her elbow on her desk. "Of course."

House smiled slightly and then walked closer to her desk.

"You doing ok?" He asked, his tone slightly more serious than it had been.

"I'm great." She grinned back. "Haven't had any morning sickness in a few days."

House nodded, "Most women stop experiencing it when they enter their second trimester." He told her factually.

Cuddy smiled and gave a half shrug, "I'd say its more of a euphoric effect."

Again House nodded. Of course, that was most likely it. After they had found Max, there was no denying that Cuddy was happy. Even if she was still sick he doubted that she would care. She would probably still be smiling and glowing.

"I told Wilson." He said after a moment. "About Max and the fact that she's our ' _love child'_."

Cuddy made a face, "Do you have to use that term?"

"Why? Does it offend my baby mama?"

Cuddy rolled her eyes, "Don't use that term either." She said with an annoyed sigh. "It makes me sound…skanky…"

"Now you're just offending the other baby mamas out there."

Cuddy huffed slightly and shook her head before trying to change the subject slightly. "So what did Wilson say?"

House shrugged one shoulder slightly. "He's Wilson. He said _'wow'_ " House paused and looked more serious. "He also thinks we should get a DNA test down."

"Oh…," Cuddy said shortly. She looked down slightly with a little frown. She looked back up at House slowly. "Is that what you want? I know you're not normally one to take someone at their word, and I guess I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to be sure."

"Do you need one? To be sure." He asked her.

Cuddy thought for a moment. She knew that a rational person would get the test done. Just to be one hundred percent sure. On the other hand, she didn't need a test to tell her that Max as her daughter. Yes, she didn't see it before, but now there was no denying that Max was hers. You couldn't fake the connection they had. Cuddy trusted Max, always had. Ever since she first met her.

"No." Cuddy finally replied. Shaking her head slowly. "I trust Max. I don't need a test to tell me that she's my daughter. I just… feel it."

"Ok," House said with a short nod.

"Ok? Ok, what?"

"Ok, we won't get a DNA test."

Cuddy looked at him, raising one eyebrow slightly. "Seriously?"

House looked away and shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal. "If you don't need the test then I don't either."

"Um, alright," Cuddy replied slowly.

This was not like House at all. Maybe he felt what she felt with Max. She never thought that House would be the kind of person to get a deep connection with anyone and just accept them at their word. She also knew better than to question it, so she didn't.

House looked at her for a moment before he slowly started to turn around. Really, he had only come down to gauze her reaction to the whole DNA test issue.

"Wait!" Cuddy called out. She reached forward on her desk and picked up a file then she held it out. "I have a case for you."

House turned back and limped towards her. He took the file and then left. Leaving Cuddy with a smile on her face.  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

Hours later Cuddy was still at her desk. She had just finished a phone call to a donor when she heard a light knock at her office door. She placed the phone back in hits cradle and then looked towards the door.

"Come in," She called.

The door opened and Max poked her head in. Cuddy couldn't help but smile broadly when she saw her.

"Hi. What are you doing here?" Cuddy asked.

"Well," Max began slowly as she walked towards Cuddy's desk. "I heard you were looking for a new assistant. Apparently, your last one turned out to be a total liar."

"Max…" Cuddy said slowly.

Max shrugged and said, "I promise I'm not a liar like her."

"I'd love for you to be my assistant again, but-"

"-But?" Max asked.

Max sat down in a chair in front of Cuddy's desk.

"Wouldn't you rather be doing something else? Going to school, getting a degree? An education?" Cuddy asked, shaking her head slightly. "You could be doing so much more than just being an assistant."

"I know. I am pretty brilliant." Max said with a cocky grin. Then her face turned more serious as she said, "But, honestly I still don't know what it is that I want to do. And I know that I probably should go back to school…but right now, I wanna be here. It'll let me spend more time with you."

"Well, that would be nice." Cuddy agreed with a smile. "Are you sure?" 

"Absolutely" Max grinned. "Besides," She began as she waved a hand towards her mother. "You need an assistant that's really gonna make your work less stressful. For you and the baby. And who better to do that than the baby's big sister?"

Cuddy laughed slightly, "Between you and House, I doubt I'll be allowed to stress about anything."

"Probably not." Max agreed with her own little laugh. After a moment she looked over at a clock on the wall. "Speaking of House… I told him I'd meet him for lunch." She looked back at Cuddy and asked, "Wanna join us?" 

"I just have one more phone call to make and then I'll meet you."

"Great," Max said with a smile as she stood up.  
 ** _  
**House MD**_**

"-Patient is complaining of blurry vision, dizziness and trouble hearing." Said Cameron

House was in his DDX room, standing in front of a whiteboard while his team sat around the large table.

"They also have unexplained blood around their fingernails." Said Chase.

"I don't need you to tell me what he has." House huffed in annoyance. "I need you to tell me _why_ he has it."

Foreman opened his mouth to say something and it was at that moment that Max walked into the room. House couldn't help but smile ever so slightly when he saw her. It was a quick smile that his team didn't notice.

"Hi," Max said, greeting House.

"He—" House began to say but was interrupted by Cameron.

"What are you doing here?" She blurted out, frowning at Max. "I thought you quit?"

"I did," Max said with a nod. She looked at Cameron and folded her arms over her chest. "Then I un-quit."

House could see Cameron struggling to roll her eyes. Foreman looked like he wasn't bothered either way and Chase was smiling slightly at Max.

"Don't you need to be downstairs, helping Cuddy?" Cameron asked in an annoyed tone.

"No-" Max started to say but House suddenly cut her off.

"-I'd stop pouting about it." He said looking at Cameron but addressing his whole team. "You're going to be seeing a lot of Max in this office."

"Because she's Cuddy's assistant," Foreman stated in an almost bored voice.

"Nope." House said, "Because she's my daughter."

Foreman and Cameron's eyes grew wide and their mouths opened slightly. They both stared at House and then looked at Max before looking back at House once again.

"Wh-what?" Cameron stuttered.

"Yep. My kid. Created from my sperm and Cuddy's egg." House replied. He was trying hard not to grin. He had to admit that seeing the complete shocked expressions on their faces was worth it.

"Wait? You and Cuddy have a kid together?" Foreman asked.

"Yeah." House nodded. "Our Lil' love child." He said with a mock affection as he looked over at Max.

"Love child?" Max asked, raising an eyebrow curiously.

House looked at her and gave a half shrug. Max then sighed and shook her head.

"Guess that's better than calling me something like 'your bastard child'. " She replied.

"Did-did you know?" Cameron asked suddenly. "This whole time? Did you know?"

Max turned to her and nodded her head just once. "Of course I knew. Why do you think I came here?"

"So you just lied?" Cameron asked. She pushed her chair back and stood up facing Max with a slight glare on her face. Then she turned to House, "doesn't that make you angry or –"

"-Nope." House snapped quickly.

"But-" Cameron began but House cut her off.

House raised his cane and pointed it towards Cameron.

"Before you try to do whatever the female version of a pissing contest is," He started to say in a very serious tone. All joking now gone. "Just know that I don't care what Max has done or said before. She's my daughter and that's that. And if I have to choose between the two of you – or any of you and her, I will choose her. Every time."

Cameron looked at House for a long moment, her eyes questioning silently if he was serious or not. After a moment, when House didn't look away from her, Cameron realised that he was dead serious. Cameron shook her head in annoyance and irritation.

"Fine." She huffed. "Guess I better go get the family history from the patient."

Cameron then turned and stalked out of the office. Foreman, House and Max watched her as she walked down the hall. After she was out of view, Max turned to House.

"Think she'll be ok?" Max asked House.

House shrugged and placed his cane back on the floor. "Don't know. Don't care."

"I'm sure she'll get over it," Foreman said. "Just give her a day or two."

Max smiled, "You know, apart from her sticking her nose into other people's business, I actually like Cameron." She paused and held up one hand, showing a small space between her thumb and index finger. "A little bit"

It was then that House finally noticed that Chase was the only one who had not spoken yet. He turned and looked at the young Australian doctor. Chase looked extremely pale, and his eyes were wide. He was staring at Max in shock with his mouth opened ever so slightly. He looked frozen in a state of shock.

House took a step towards him and started waving a hand frantically in front of Chase's face. When Chase didn't move House said, "Cool. We broke him."

"Wh-wh-what?" Chase stuttered, finally coming back to his senses.

"Is the news that I procreated that much of a shock to you?" House asked as an amused smirk appeared on his face.

"No, no, I…" Chase started to say as he shook his head vigorously. 

Max studied Chase for a moment before she sighed and said, "I think he's just shocked since he and I have had sex together."

"What!" House shouted. He looked at Max, eyes wide in shock. Then he turned to Chase and glared at him. He was fuming and if looks could kill….

"Dude," Foreman chuckled. "You slept with House's daughter."

"I—I, no." Chase shook his head rather quickly once again. Suddenly he stood up and knocked his chair over as he did. "I need…Cameron, help…patient…."

Chase turned and almost ran out of the room. Foreman sat back in his chair with an amused look on his face. House was still glaring sternly at the spot where Chase had just gone. Max turned to look at House and couldn't help but laugh loudly.

"Oh, this is gonna be so much fun," Max said with a wide grin.

House turned to her. His face softened straight away and he couldn't help it when the corners of his mouth started to twitch up slightly.

"This will be fun." House agreed.

 **THE END.**  
 _  
… or is it?... The answer is no. I have a sequel planned. Hopefully, I will have the first chapter up before the end of January. I will be away for a while over the Christmas break so please don't expect anything until the very end of January if not after, but it is coming._

 _The sequel is going to be called_ **Our Crazy family** __

 _Heres what you can expect from that story:  
1- More interaction between House, Max and Cuddy  
2- Chase and Max (will they be a couple? Will they become friends?)  
3- Max and Wilson playing matchmaker for Cuddy and House  
4- An appearance by House's mother  
5- An appearance by Cuddy's mother and sister  
6- An appearance by Max's mother (her adopted mother)  
7- Possible House and Cuddy romance  
8- Everyone dealing with Cuddy's pregnancy  
9- Some drug issues  
10- The birth of the new baby (will it be smooth sailing?)  
Plus much much more!_


End file.
